


Home For Fall

by EmisonClexa



Category: Pretty Little Liars
Genre: Emison - Freeform, Ezria, F/F, Haleb, Mental Health Issues, Murder Mystery, PLL, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, References to Depression, Spoby, Suicide Attempt, girlxgirl
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-15
Updated: 2017-12-15
Packaged: 2019-02-15 06:19:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 20
Words: 69,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13025061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmisonClexa/pseuds/EmisonClexa
Summary: Five years have gone by since -A was caught and the girls went separate ways.  Emily joined the Army in an attempt to follow in her father's footsteps. She chooses to join due to the fact that she didn't feel like she fit in at college and deployed to Afghanistan. She has not spoken to Alison at all since she left for California and doesn't intend to. She doesn't want Alison, her sick mother, or the girls to know she joined. She also doesn't wish for them to meet the monster she's become.Alison has become a teacher at Rosewood High and takes care of her sister Charlotte on the side. She misses Emily and tries to forget about her. But after Charlotte is murdered, Alison contacts the girls to come back to Rosewood so she would have comfort while she grieved.On the outside however, somebody wants just that. They wait for the five girls to reunite, that way they can strike and keep Alison and Emily apart forever.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there all! 
> 
> Today I've decided to take the leap from Wattpad to Archive of Our Own. Although I've had an account on here for years, I figured now was the time to finally add some of my most popular works to this site. 
> 
> The username on both sites are the same so all of the work that I post here is rightfully mine.  
> Some of the updates here will be shorter than what is normal because they're being adapted from Wattpad chapters. I'm going to try to combine chapters to make the updates here a little longer. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy these installments of Home For Fall. I'll meet you all at the bottom!

Emily sat up against the wall of the helicopter with the pit in her stomach only growing deeper. A couple of the other soldiers in her squadron grimly faced away from each other. They stared out the open sides of the Helicopter's metal body so that they could see the dunes of Afghanistan.

She couldn't imagine what they must've been thinking. They were probably as scared as she was.

She fixed her helmet so that it didn't fall over her eyes. The picture of her dad in his handsome dress blues was attached to the inside of it. Emily often looked at it from time to time when she was feeling anxious or lonely. She had a couple other pictures back at the base in California of her friends.

She had secretly snuck a couple of them in her pockets, as well as a few letters from her friend Hanna.

Hanna loved to discuss how things were going for her at FIT, the prestigious fashion school in New York. Spencer often bragged how amazing Georgetown was. Even Aria was in love wth NYU and probably a couple of the teachers who worked there.

Emily was happy for her friends because they were happy, but she was also jealous. They had all found a place where they felt they belonged. She had dropped out of college to join the army.

Although Charlotte had been unmasked, Emily couldn't help but be startled in her sleep every now and then as she feared A's notorious return.

Emily figured since she already had PTSD from the many years of torture and the murder she had committed, joining the military was her best bet. There were no questions as to what branch, either. She chose the Army just like her dad.

"STAY ALERT. WE LAND IN FOUR MINUTES," one of the gunmen yelled over the deafening roar of the propellers.

All of the soldiers in the helicopter tensed up. They had prepared for this mission for months. Emily had prepared for this moment for months.

She gripped the M-14 that was strapped to her chest and fingered the trigger. I'm going to have to pull this today. She thought to herself.

Immediately as the helicopter's ski bottoms hit the sand, the loud sounds of screaming and gunshots erupted from the desert. Aggressors had been waiting for them to arrive.

Emily could hear the sound of bullets whizzing by her ear as she jumped to the side and ducked behind a large metal container. It clanged and groaned as bullets ricocheted off of its sides.

One of the terrified soldiers next to her who positioned his rifle to shoot fell back against the ground, a small hole leaking bright red blood in the center of his helmet.

For the first time in a while Emily missed Alison Dilaurentis and didn't push her feelings aside. She imagined Ali's long curly blonde hair, her two deep, adorable dimples, and her bright blue eyes. Her eyes reminded Emily of the pool she used to adore swimming in. They were so clear and cool.

More bullets flew by. One of the soldiers turned to Emily. "GET THE HELL OUT OF THERE AND HELP FUCKING FIGHT, FIELDS! WE'RE BEING SWAMPED!" he shouted.

Emily's nervous and shaking hands clicked the safety latch forward and aimed for one of the aggressors laying in the grass. He was shouting something in Arabic towards the others with him. Emily couldn't tell how many there were. She didn't care. All she knew was that they had to die. She didn't want to kill them, but she had to.

She pulled the trigger and felt as her rifle gave way and the man in the grass fell face first into the sand and remained still. The shock wasn't nearly as bad as when she killed Nate. As weird as it was, she felt almost used to it.

Eventually the fighting stopped. The desert became still. Out of ten of the Army's soldiers, four of them were killed in active combat. The bodies of the aggressors lay nearby. Emily shot three of them and there were sixteen.

The gunmen from earlier turned towards what remained of the soldiers, including Emily and shouted, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the battlefront."

* * *

Alison began to pour a cup of tea for her sister, Charlotte, who sat glaring at all of the other patients in the sanitarium.

She couldn't help but sigh as she stared at her sick sister's turned back. Ever since she had been revealed as A and stuck in here, she had been more and more distant. Her doctors merely said it was because she was bored and didn't have her source of entertainment any longer.

That source of entertainment not only included torturing Alison's four best friends (one of them being the love of her life), but also tracking and torturing Alison herself.

Alison added a bit of honey to the tea and pushed it towards Charlotte who only looked at it disgustedly.

"Drink it. It's good for you," Alison added.

"It's basically flavored water. It's as bland as this place," Charlotte whined.

_Well, you wouldn't be here if you hadn't tried to kill us all_ , Ali thought to herself quietly.

"What about a board game? Do you want to play a board game?" Alison asked.

"Not really."

"Do you want to go back to your room?"

"I guess," Charlotte mused.

Eddie Lamb, who used to work at Radley before it became a five star hotel walked by them with a meal cart.

"Alison! I almost didn't see you there. How are you?" he asked.

Alison stood up from Charlotte who was finally beginning to take some interest in the string of her tea bag.

"I'm doing okay. Hey, Eddie. I have to ask. How has she been? I know I haven't visited in almost a week. It's been very hard with grading midterms," Alison said.

He lowered his voice to match hers. "She seems like she's all there whenever I come in. It's still the same though. She asks how Radley is. She asks about the town."

"It must be driving her crazy... Being in here," Alison whispered.

"Usually people come here BECAUSE they're crazy. Not the other way around. Though we technically believe it's a bit insensitive to call mentally ill people crazy," Eddie said.

"I just hope she isn't mad with me for not visiting. That's really the one reason why I ask. I'm the only family she's got. Jason doesn't visit her, and of course neither does our dad. She's virtually all alone," Alison said as she watched Charlotte finally take a sip of the steaming tea.

"Nah, don't get too worked up over it. The days in here all blend together. I'm pretty sure she didn't know any differently," Eddie tried to reassure her.

"I hope not."

"Hey, have you heard from Spencer recently? I haven't in a while. Last I saw her, she told me she was going to Georgetown. Nice school. I hope she enjoyed it while it lasted," Eddie said.

"No, I haven't. The girls and I don't speak much anymore. I hear from Aria the most. We talk maybe twice a month. I heard from Hanna about three weeks ago, and Spencer a little over three months ago."

"What about Emily?" Eddie asked.

Alison felt a pang in her chest at the sound of her name. "I haven't heard from Em in five years," she said tightly.

"No kidding?" Eddie asked as he leaned against the wall.

"Yeah."

"I always thought you two seemed the closest. Never imagined you guys would be the ones who grew apart," he said.

"I guess it just happens sometimes. I tried getting in contact with her. It was like she dropped off the face of the planet. It stopped hurting after a while," Alison lied.

_If only,_ she thought.

"And the others girls haven't heard from her either?" he asked.

"I don't know. I haven't really asked them."

"Well. I'm sure Emily is just trying to figure herself out. Sometimes that's what people need to do every now and then. I better be going. I've got my rounds. But I'll see you soon," he said.

Alison thanked Eddie and helped Charlotte walk to her room. They sat on Charlotte's bed and Alison read her a bedtime story. She kissed her forehead.

"Go to sleep. I'll see you tomorrow."

"I heard what you were saying to Eddie. About you and the girls. It's a shame," Charlotte said.

Alison always felt highly uncomfortable discussing the girls with her sister. It was almost an obsessive topic with her.

"Well, that's what happens in the world. You should know that. People grow apart sometimes," Alison said.

"Even people like you and Emily?" Charlotte said.

Alison stopped dead in her tracks.

Charlotte smirked. "And the crowd goes silent."

"We're not discussing this anymore. I'll see you tomorrow," Alison snapped.

"You are still in love with her. Even after all these years of her not even being bothered to contact you?" Charlotte asked again.

Alison was beginning to become annoyed. "I'm not in love with Emily. Emily used to love me. That was a very long time ago."

"Sweetheart, five years wasn't all that long ago. We all remember it like it was  just yesterday," Charlotte said sympathetically.

Alison turned off her sister's light and closed the door behind her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hola there. 
> 
> Earlier this week I had surgery and I can no longer stand the pain in my stomach. 
> 
> So I'm going to post an early chapter for you and then go into depth at the bottom. 
> 
> Enjoy.

Emily couldn't believe how much action she had seen in just two weeks of being in Afghanistan.

Everyday they gained new soldiers, and lost some more. Emily felt as if she were standing in a long line waiting to die.

Now that women were able to participate in heavy duty combat, Emily was always afraid her squad would be rotated into the field. She wasn't sure if she could handle having to take any more lives than she already had.

Four people. She had killed four people in her life. If the death toll continued, she feared she might lose her mind.

She sat in one of the large tents that was pitched to hold the chow room with a couple of the girls from her squadron.

They were always wearing the same things when they weren't necessarily needed. Their tan boots, digital camo pants, a tan belt, and a tan undershirt that had US Army sprawled across the front in simple black letters. The majority of the time, they had to have their hair pulled up into a tight bun. But when they were eating, playing soccer around the compound, or hanging out in the bunks, they just let it lay loose.

Emily poked around her food with the fork. It was mushy and red and didn't nearly resemble anything recognizable. Emily thought it could've been beets. Maybe it was. Who knew? They didn't care whether you liked it or not. You got a meal and you either ate it or you starved.

One of the girls in her unit whom Emily considered herself close to, Sophia, watched her. "What's wrong Fields? Got a bad case of the stomach bug?"

Emily scoffed. "Yeah, I wish."

"You're nervous, aren't you?"

"About what?"

"Being rotated. Look man, I get it. But that's why we're here. We're here to fight," Sophia said.

One of the other girls with dark black skin whom Emily recognized as somebody they called "Twig" looked up. "Yeah, Fields. Why join the Army if that's what you weren't prepared to do?"

Emily clenched her jaw. "I never said I wasn't prepared to do anything. You guys act like it's not okay to be afraid to die."

Another one of the girls, Allen, coughed. "You can't afford to be afraid to die when you're fighting. In the end, it'll just get you killed. Might as well not be afraid of it."

"Hey, don't scare the girl," Sophia scolded.

Twig barked out a laugh. "Don't scare her? She's in the fucking desert with a whole bunch of shit bags who blow themselves up for joy. I don't know about you, but that scares the hell out of me."

"Have any of you actually been in a situation where you've almost been shot out here? Or where you've had to shoot someone else?" Emily asked.

The table grew silent.

"Yeah, I thought not. Well guess what? I have. My first day out here, I watched good people die beside me. Good soldiers. I killed people. Whether they're bad or good, they're still humans. Forgive me if I'm afraid to die. I'm the only one who's come remotely close to it," Emily spat.

"Aw, baby girl, you break my heart," a deep voice said from behind her.

Emily turned around to see a tall burly man sitting on one of the tables playing with the blades of his pocket knife. She immediately wished she hadn't had said anything.

"Man, did I ruin a moment?" he asked sarcastically as the girls looked from one to the other in confusion.

Emily shook her head. He chuckled and strutted over so he could sit on the same bench as Sophia. She seemed uncomfortable with how close he was to her.

"The girl's got a point. You should be scared. At first, at least," he said.

"At first?" Allen asked.

"I came out here eight months ago. It'll be my ninth month on Tuesday. I'm still here. And when I first started fighting, I was terrified. But after a while that part of you kind of dies," he said as he continued playing with the blades.

"Okay, thanks for the info GI Joe," Twig said dismissively.

"Oh, don't believe me, Private Carter?" he asked.

She seemed taken aback by the fact that he knew her name.

"I should get to know all of you shouldn't I? Now that I'm your squad leader? Lieutenant Meyers," he said introducing himself.

The girls all nodded towards him, unsure of what to say.

"Fields, you say you've seen active combat before?" he asked.

Emily narrowed her eyebrows. "Yeah. The first day I got here. Why?"

"I'm sending out a couple teams tonight. However, I don't want soldiers who have heads that are too heavy for their shoulders," he muttered.

Twig looked away defensively.

"I want you to come with us. Mainly because you have already seen action. You already know what it's like to shoot a man through and through," he said.

Emily felt queasy. She felt as if God or whoever was watching down on her purposely listened to her prayer of not getting sent out and didn't give a damn.        

Most of all, she couldn't help but think of Alison. Ever since she had arrived in this wasteland two weeks ago, Ali was the only thing on her mind. She hadn't spoken to her in four and a half years. But in every little thing she did, Alison was there with her.

It wasn't like they ended their friendship in a fight, because they didn't. Emily knew what she had to do though. She knew for Alison's sake, she had to let her go. Even when Alison fruitlessly attempted getting in touch with her, Emily made sure she threw out the letters and deleted the texts. It wasn't fair to make her wait around for four years.

Ali never would've let her join the army, either. In Emily's mind, it was just another complication she couldn't deal with. Alison was just simply better off not knowing Emily any longer.

She joined the army primarily to follow in her father's footsteps, but also to take care of her mom, who had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer Emily's second year of college.

Pam didn't have a lot of money. She certainly didn't have enough to put Emily through college, AND pay for her chemo and radiation treatments.

Knowing this, Emily packed up her dorm room and cozied up to Uncle Sam and his gloriously "decent" pay checks. Of course, she didn't tell her mother that.

Upon deployment, she told her mother she would be going overseas to study foreign language in Greece for a year and wouldn't be able to text. She sent the occasional letter just to let her mom know she was alright, but never added a return address. She couldn't risk Pam finding out exactly where she was or how she was somehow getting all her treatments paid for.

As Emily agreed to go on the mission that night, she stood up from the table and walked through the blistering heat towards her tent which was on the far left side of the compound.

The setting was booming with hundreds of troops milling around bored out of their minds. Some exchanged photos of their families while others cleaned their guns, walked in and out of the mess hall, gym, firing range, and latrines. There really wasn't much to do.

Emily pushed aside the flap that lead into her bunk and walked down the aisle of cots that were surrounded by large army duffle bags.

She could imagine her dad out here. She could picture him sitting on his cot reading some of the letters she had sent to him and him smiling at them. It always made her feel better to think of her dad.

She sat down on her cot which was in between Allen's and Sophia's, and pulled out her stationary.

_Dear Alison,_ she began to write, but slowly caught herself.

_Dear Hanna,_ she began again.  
_I know you haven't heard from me in a while. I'm sorry. I don't honestly know how long this is going to take to get to you but I have to admit something. You're probably going to kill me if I even return._

_I joined the Army. I'm in the 15th Lima Battalion. I had no choice but to leave Pepperdine. I loved Malibu and its white sandy beaches and the sound of the waves crashing against the shore every morning._

_But after my mom got sick, she couldn't keep up with the bills and the large sum of money she needed to put forth for my tuition._

_Please don't be angry with me. As much as I loved being there, I didn't feel like I fit in. At least out here, I feel like I'm with my dad._

_I'm at Shindand Air Base in Herat Province, Afghanistan. I was deployed two weeks ago. I don't know how I'm going to manage being out in this desert for nine months. I'm going out on a mission tonight, which is why I've decided to write to you._

_Somebody had to know where I was. Please, Han. Don't tell the others. I know we said we were done with the lying, but I haven't seen any of them in almost five years. Nine more months won't hurt them._

Emily slowly crinkled the edges of the paper and bit her tongue. She couldn't believe she was actually considering writing the next part of her letter.

_How is Ali? I miss you all. I really do. This whole plan of secrecy is very hard for me to cope with. But I miss her. I miss her a lot. I thought after us not speaking the many years we hadn't, I'd have been over her by now. But I'm not, Han. Leaving her behind in Rosewood was the stupidest decision I ever made._

_I know what you're probably thinking. You're probably thinking I was stupid for joining the Army. And maybe I am. But I love it out here and the thrill of it all. Fighting for something greater than myself. It feels so pure._

_I trust you the most, Han. I figured if any of you had to find out, it would have to be you. I would tell Alison, but she would freak out. That's why I left her. I left her so she could move on from me._

_I regret not staying and trying to make something more of what her and I had. When -A was running around torturing us, she admitted she loved me. And yet, even though she told me, I didn't believe her. I'm so stupid, Hanna._

_And I'm so sorry. I'm sorry you're finding this out now. I'm sorry you're finding out through a letter that I wrote AFTER I was deployed. But just please. If anything happens to me, Hanna, please take care of yourself. Take care of my mom and let her know I loved her. Tell all of the girls I loved them. And please._

_Take care of Ali._

_* * *_

 

Alison walked through the Rosewood grocery store, only stopping to pick up a couple assorted soups for her kitchen.

She couldn't stop thinking of Charlotte's words. Alison didn't like to think of her sister as -A, but the cruel reality was that she was. In the end, she was probably just messing with her.

But had she really ever stopped loving Emily? Is that why she couldn't ever stop thinking about her or where she was?

She heard her cell phone chirp and looked at it sitting on top of her wallet in her purse. Aria's name popped up on the screen.

Alison held the phone up to her ear. "Hello?" she asked breathlessly.

"Ali, hey!"

"Hey Aria. How's the writing job going? Did you end up getting it?"

"No, actually I didn't. But I work for Simon & Schuster publishing company in the city. It's not exactly what I had in mind, but it's still pretty amazing. You wouldn't believe how long the publishing process is," Aria droned on.

She continued to tell Alison all about how books were created and even how the covers were designed. Alison tried her best to stay intrigued but found it difficult to concentrate on Aria's words.

"What about you? How's Rosewood High?" Aria asked.

"What?" Alison asked, suddenly confused.

"You teach there? Rosewood High? Where we all went to school?" Aria asked, bewildered.

"Oh, yeah. It's fine. I mean, it's Rosewood. How great could it possibly be? It's loser central," Alison joked. Yet she couldn't help but think _she_ was the loser. She was the only one left there.

"You should really come out and visit me in the city sometime. Maybe take a train out here. We could get all the girls together," Aria said.

Alison blushed. "So you've talked to them?"

"Mainly you and Spencer. Team Sparia, gotta keep our rep up. I spoke to Hanna last week. Her boss is really kicking her ass so it isn't easy to get in touch with her. Don't take it personally if she hasn't been very connected lately. I think she's in Milan right now. She mentioned something about her boss' winter clothing line being released soon," Aria said.

"Have you heard from Em?" Alison asked suddenly.

She feared that Aria may pick up on her words and notice the hint of desperation. It was silent on the line for a couple of seconds. Those seconds seemed like years. Alison dreaded every single one of them.

"No, Ali I haven't. The only person who's heard from her in the last three months was Hanna. She said Emily's been extremely busy. It's like she practically doesn't own a phone," Aria said softly.

Alison's throat clenched up. So it wasn't just her. Yet she felt as though it were. Why Hanna? Why not her? Emily was supposed to be in love with her. Why not her?

"If you want leads on Emily though, I highly suggest giving Hanna a call. If anybody knows where she is, it's her. It may take her a little to get back to you, but she will," Aria said.

"I hope she's okay. I miss her," Alison said. She was on the verge of crying now.

"We all do, Ali. We all do. But Emily is tough. She's probably surfing the sandy beaches of Malibu right now with her new super hot friends in tight bikinis  drinking martinis," Aria said.

The thought of Emily in a bikini made Alison blush. But she understood what Aria meant. In the end, all that mattered was that Emily was happy. She was happy like the rest of them because they were all away from Rosewood.

It was every kid's dream come true to leave this terrible tiny town. Those that left never wished to ever come back. Those that stayed wish they could get away.

All of her friends had escaped. They had found a way to establish a new life somewhere else.

Emily was one of them. Malibu was much more ideal than Rosewood. Even if Alison told her she wanted her to stay, Emily never would've agreed. The town brings back too many bad memories.

Yes, they had all gotten away. Yet Alison hadn't. She had gotten away when -A was tracking her, but she never really made her perfect get away. No, not really.

They were gone and she was still there. That scared Alison. It made her feel trapped.

It was almost as if she had never really left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh sweet ignorance, how we love you so. 
> 
> But real talk. Emily's internal struggle and the idea of Alison constantly residing in her head will be a recurring theme throughout the story. It's her safe haven and her place of comfort when she needs it. 
> 
> Bottom line. Emily is scared, whether she openly admits that or not. Terrified, actually. And throughout the book, those feelings are going to be exhibited and she will be using Alison and the other girls to grow. Also, a public service announcement, in this work of fiction, Emily and Alison did NOT have sex in 5x05. I understand that's what happened in the show, but for the fiction's sake, that's not what happens here and you'll see why very soon.
> 
> I'd hate to keep you any longer than I have to.  
> Next update - Monday. (If I can keep myself from updating early.) 
> 
> I'll see you all soon.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good Monday all! 
> 
> I just want to point out that although the deployment chapters get darker, the story does lighten up. 
> 
> I hope you'll stick through them. But take care of your mental health first! 
> 
> Onward!

Emily shot up in the bunker in a cold sweat. The air outside that was flowing in through the open flap chilled the droplets running down her back. She looked around at Sophia and Allen who were fast asleep in their cots. Twig was in the east corner snoring away.

The only shade of light came from the moon shining down on the Afghani desert.

They were leaving again for one of the small villages in the morning. Emily couldn't stand it. She had seen enough since she got there. It hadn't even been two months yet. She could slowly feel herself losing her mind.

The death toll she had on her shoulders was slowly rising. Every time Meyers insisted she went out on a mission with a unit, she was forced to pull a trigger. She watched her brothers and her sisters die along side her.

Thankfully, none of them were the girls she had grown exceptionally close to. Yet.

There was one time where Emily ducked away just in time as a bullet grazed her arm. She bled for a couple of seconds, but with a little bit of pressure, it eventually began to ease up.

She had cried. She couldn't help it. That was when it fully registered that she wasn't in Rosewood anymore. She was in an active war zone. People were dying.

Meyers had reached down and pulled her up to check it while the other insurgents were put down.

"It's just a flesh wound," he had told her after the soldiers ceased fire. "Look at me Fields. And stop fucking crying."

She had looked at him with tears streaming down her face. What was she doing out here? Why was she doing this? And just how stupid was she really?

"You're fine. Get the fuck up. Get your fucking weapon, and grow up. I have seen Marines fight after having both of their fucking legs blown off. I have to keep all of you alive. I don't have time to babysit the solider who gets hurt after falling on the playground. Do me a favor. Man up," he growled.

She knew better than to argue and wiped her tears away on her sleeve. She didn't even mind that some of the dirt wiped onto her face along with it. That was what bothered her the most about Afghanistan. It wasn't the insurgents who almost always tried to kill her. It was the goddamn dirt.

Returning to reality, she swung her legs over the side. They had learned to eventually just sleep in their uniforms. Roll call in the mornings left them no time to properly change. If you weren't ready, you went out in whatever you had on.

Emily snuck through the cots and brought her hat with her. She tried her best not to wake the others. None of them stirred. She slipped out through the tent and into the night.

Outside, she could just vaguely see the sun rising over the Afghan mountains. She stared at it. She wished she wasn't on a battleground. She wished she was in Rosewood with Alison, sitting on her rooftop watching the sun rise with her.

"Couldn't sleep, I assume? Usually you newbies are so particular about your sleep," she heard Meyers say behind her.

She spun around to face him and he chuckled. He was sitting on one of the hoods of the Hummers while lacing his boots.

"Just anxious, I guess. It's not as bad as it used to be though," Emily said.

"That's expected. But you feel yourself changing, don't you? You feel it finally setting in," he said.

She shook her head confused. "I don't know what the hell you're talking about."

"That means it hasn't clicked yet. Let me ask you this. Do you still wake up in cold sweats because you're scared or because you're disturbed over how many lives you've taken?" Meyers asked.

Emily didn't want to answer honestly, yet she did. "Yes."

"Okay, so that's the REAL reason you're awake. But guess what, Fields? Have you wondered why I keep continuously sending you out to fight?" he asked again.

She shook her head. "All due respect Sir, but I have no idea where you're going with this."

"I'm trying to make it click. One day, you're not going to care anymore. You're not going to care who's standing in front of that barrel. All that will matter to you is how fast it takes them to hit the ground after you've pulled the trigger," Meyers said.

"So you want me to become a murderer?" Emily asked, shocked.

"I don't want you to be a murderer. I want you to wake up and realize who the real enemy is. You're not the bad guy for killing the bad guys. These people blow up children, they burn people alive. They behead people. They fly planes into skyscrapers in overly large cities. They participate in suicide bombings in peaceful places. You are not the bad guy for trying to keep thousands of good people safe. One day, you will pull the trigger and you won't give a damn about it any longer," he said.

Emily gritted her teeth and found her knuckles were clenched by her sides.

"Is that what happened to you?" she asked him.

He took out his pocket knife and showed her the blade she was so used to seeing him toy with. "See this? I stabbed one of those bastards in the eye. He was about to blow up a playground. A playground, Fields. There were children and women harmlessly playing on it. They never would have seen it coming. Now you tell me. Would you rather have him walking around, or dead?"

She didn't answer. But she didn't have to. Meyers knew what she was thinking. He stood up and walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Tell me. Is there somebody back home that you miss? A guy, maybe?" he asked.

"Why, Lieutenant, are you flirting with me?" Emily joked.

He laughed and shook his head. "Afraid not. I have a wife and two very beautiful baby boys at home. But I sincerely mean it. Who do you want to go home to?"

Emily didn't have to think about it. "Actually, there isn't a guy. But there is a girl. Two girls. My mom and Alison," she said.

"And is this Alison your girlfriend?" he asked.

"No, not really. She's just somebody I want to go home to," Emily said quickly and looked down at her boots which were scuffing up dirt.

"Well, this Alison chick will see you again. If you want it bad enough, you'll get to go home to her."

* * *

Hanna sat behind her desk and flipped through a couple of letters she had that she had piled together.

"Marlene! What did I tell you about putting so many goddamn letters on my desk without sorting them?" she called out.

Marlene, the intern, stuck her head in the room. "I'm sorry, but, you never told me that."

"Yes I did," Hanna said defensively.

"No, you didn't," Marlene said again.

"Whatever. Just let me sulk in private. Close my door behind you," Hanna muttered.

She continued rummaging through the letters until she stumbled upon familiar handwriting etched into an envelope.

She recognized Emily's sloppy scribble immediately. Hanna used to always make fun of her for the way she wrote her A's. But as of late, the letter A wasn't something to joke about.

She noticed there was no return address in the corner of the envelope and decided to tear it open anyways. Why was she sending a letter? Why not text? Maybe she had found out Hanna was in Milan and didn't want to spend the money for international texting. Either way, Hanna was clueless.

She read through the letter once. Then she read through it again. And again. And again. The words within it made her want to puke.

Emily joined the Army? She was in Afghanistan? "What the fuck?" Hanna said louder than intended.

How could Emily have not told anybody about this? And what took the letter so long to get there? Hanna realized it had to first leave from Afghanistan and get to the states. Then somebody in the office who was sorting things had to reroute Hanna's mail to Milan.

For all she knew, Emily could be in a VA hospital. Or worse. _Dead_.

Hanna jumped at the sound of her cell phone blaring some old Justin Bieber song from when she was fourteen. She still hadn't changed it. She never saw the need to. Nobody usually called her on her cell phone unless it was her mother, one of her friends, or occasionally Caleb. Except he was back in the states and didn't like talking over the phone much. She usually Skyped him instead.

She held it to her ear, the content from the letter still overwhelming her. "Hello?" her voice cracked.

 _"Hanna? It's Alison,"_ she heard the other blonde say over the speaker.

"Oh... Hey. I was just thinking about you. What's up?" Hanna asked as she tossed Emily's letter aside and wiped the tears from her eyes. She tried her best not to smear her mascara.

" _This is going to sound really weird, but Aria actually sent me. She said you were the last one to speak to Em,"_ Alison said.

Hanna went silent and stared at the letter on her desk which explicitly told her not to tell the other girls. She knew this especially meant Alison.

"I mean, I spoke to her a while ago. But I've been in Milan for the past month and a half. Why? Do you need to speak with her?" Hanna asked.

" _Well, we haven't spoken in five years. I doubt she wants to speak to me now. She's probably too busy enjoying the white hot sandy beaches of Malibu to care though_ ," Alison said bitterly.

Hanna grimaced. "Yeah... It's definitely hot and sandy where she is."

The other blonde didn't seem to pick up on Hanna's subtlety. _"Just... How is she, Han? When was the last time you spoke to her?"_ Alison asked.

Hanna racked her brain. She didn't want to lie to Alison, but she couldn't tell her the truth. If Alison knew Emily was in Afghanistan, it wouldn't end well. Alison would then tell the others, and eventually it would lead back to Pam. The last thing that poor woman needed was a heart attack on top of the cancer.

"We spoke before I left for Milan. She's fine. She's enjoying the beautiful beaches of Malibu and the hot chicks that go along with it. She gets laid practically every night. She went into many very detailed descriptions," Hanna lied.

 _"She what?"_ Alison choked.

"Yeah. She loves girls. I mean, it's obvious because she's gay," Hanna said.

 _"You sound like you're trying to cover something up Hanna,"_ Alison said suspiciously.

Hanna laughed to herself nervously. "No, not really. I mean, it's not like Emily is inside the closest right? All the girls in Malibu are gay now because of her."

Alison was starting to become slightly annoyed with hearing about Emily sleeping with a whole bunch of random girls. Her and Emily had never slept together. The thought of them ever doing more than just kissing was simply that. A thought.

Though Alison couldn't lie to herself. She had thought of it many times. She couldn't not imagine waking up next to Emily after a long night of nonstop love making. She figured if all the other girls got to experience it, why couldn't she?

Emily had even gotten to experience it with Paige. It was bad enough thinking about Emily in California. But the thought of Emily in California with Paige drove Alison up a wall.

 _"Yeah, yeah. Hanna, I get it,"_ Alison snapped.

"Wow, somebody's being a bit touchy today," Hanna said.

_"I'm sorry. I have to go. I promised Charlotte I'd visit."_

"How is the she-devil by the way?" Hanna asked with a smug grin on her lips.

 _"_ She _is Charlotte. And she's fine I guess. She mainly just sits in her room and stares at the walls,"_ Alison said.

Hanna could hear the buzzing sound of the heavy metal doors being unlocked from the other side of the phone.

"Are they still keeping her on severe lockdown?" Hanna asked.

Alison laughed coldly. _"They still think she's borderline criminal. She should be allowed to go outside every now and again like the rest of the patients."_

"Ali, no offense, but Charlotte IS borderline criminal. She locked us up in a fucking dollhouse and toyed with us for years. Not to mention, she ran you out of town and tried to KILL us all," Hanna said.

 _"You don't know her like I do,"_ Alison said.

Hanna heard another loud buzz. How many more doors is she behind? She thought to herself.

"You're right Ali. I don't. But I do know one thing. The only thing keeping her out of jail is the fact that the girls and I let her plead insane instead of just guilty. Otherwise she'd be behind bars getting raped with a stick of butter," Hanna scolded.

 _"Stop,"_ Alison demanded. Her voice had turned cold as ice.

Hanna knew she struck a nerve. She sighed. "I'm sorry, Ali. That was uncalled for."

 _"You think?"_ Alison snapped. _"She's my fucking sister."_

The line was dead for a couple of seconds. Hanna stared at the letter on her desk and ran her fingers over where Emily had crudely written her signature.

 _"You still there, Hanna?"_ Alison asked quietly.

"Yes Ali," Hanna responded.

 _"I'm sorry I snapped I'm just,"_ Alison paused, _"I'm just overwhelmed. And I miss you guys. And I miss Em."_

Hanna shrugged even though Ali couldn't see her. "She misses you too."

 _"How do you know?"_ Alison asked.

Hanna thought of what to say. She decided it was best not to lie about everything.

"I know she misses you Ali. Because she told me she did."

The line was quiet again. On the other end she could slightly hear Alison sniffle. At least, that's what Hanna thought she heard.

 _"I'll talk to you soon, Han. Good night,"_ Alison said softly.

And although it was daylight in Milan, Hanna couldn't help but slightly miss Rosewood and the Brew where her and her friends would hang out after school days. It all seemed so far away now. And just like Alison, Hanna also missed Emily. She couldn't help but think that if Emily made it back from Afghanistan alive, she'd be the one to kill her.

"Goodnight Ali."

Hanna hung up her phone and held it against her chin for a couple of seconds before folding Emily's letter back up and stuffing it in the envelope. She tucked it into the folds of her jacket and continued on with her work.

For now, Emily's secret was safe with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I do want to make it known that yes, this work of fiction does have a dark beginning and darker themed parts throughout it. The deployment parts are a little more depressing than the rest of the novel but that isn't something that carries on throughout the story.
> 
> In this, one of the underlying themes is living a daily life while also suffering from PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder.) Please note that members of the armed forces aren't the only ones with PTSD and that it comes from almost any traumatic situation. It depends on the person in many cases but please keep that in mind when reading Emily's struggles.
> 
> She isn't crazy, she's sick (and there's nothing wrong with that.) As I believe I've mentioned, Emily will be using the other girls to grow. She has to find herself once again and attach with the emotional side of her that simply wants to feel.
> 
> And it starts with Alison and her coping methods involving Alison.
> 
> See you all Wednesday.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoo boy. 
> 
> I've got a long chapter for you guys today. It's dark and somewhat depressing. 
> 
> I promise it doesn't stay like this, but just be aware. 
> 
> Happy reading!

_Every day blends into the same thing. It never ends. But now, it's bearable. It's still hard to take a life, but not like it was. I don't struggle with it much anymore. I've seen horrors nobody should ever have to see. I've seen men murder innocent women and children. More of my friends die every day._

_Last week, Allen went out on a convoy mission to a small city with another team that got rotated. They wouldn't tell the rest of us where it was. They insisted that it was top secret. I guess even soldiers must keep secrets from other soldiers._

_Anyways, she went out. It was her first mission in the field. She was super nervous because things are different out there than they are in training. But I guess she had a right to be scared. Because that was the day she died._

_They told us it was a roadside bomb. Only one of the soldiers made it. But he was beyond recognition. Rumor has it he died that night in the infirmary. Or he got sent home. There was a lot of speculation about it. I'm not sure what's true and what isn't anymore._

_I'm going on another mission tonight, Ali. I'm going to find the men who were responsible for killing Allen. They're going to wish they hadn't seen me. I know I sound like a monster, Ali. But I'm not. I'm doing what has to be done._

Emily stopped writing the letter and let the pen's tip poke into the paper. She had written one every day since she finally bucked up the courage to send Hanna one. And they were almost all addressed to Alison. But she hadn't tried to send a single one of them. She couldn't.

Alison could never know. She didn't even know Alison anymore. For all she knew, the other girl was married, expecting children and happy.

The first year of college, Emily had tried to give Paige a shot again. Neither of them were geniuses when it came to relationships. But Paige had constantly blamed Alison for stealing Emily away from her. Along with it, she would personally blame Emily for letting Alison.

The night Emily and Alison hooked up, however, it wasn't either of their faults. It had just kind of happened. And neither of them really got a chance to confront their feelings for each other. Even though Alison admitted she loved Emily. However, not knowing what else to do, Emily freaked out and stuffed her emotions away to protect herself.

Emily shoved the paper back underneath her cot and took out her helmet. She looked at the small picture of her dad underneath the mesh inside.

_I'm going to make you proud. I'm going to, I promise,_ She thought to herself.

"Fields! Get your ass outside!" Twig yelled from beyond the tent.

Emily continued packing up her duffle and slung it over her back. She didn't know if she'd ever be coming back.

"You're late," Meyers said once she'd finally shown up to roll call.

Emily pulled her hat down over her eyes so the sun couldn't blind her. "I'm sorry, sir. It won't happen again."

"Yeah, you've said that the last four times it's happened. Look, do me a favor Fields. Do your fucking job. Don't be late again," he said.

She smirked. "Yes sir."

They began to climb into the humvee and tightly tuck themselves into the seats. Twig sat by the left window, Sophia sat in the middle, and Emily sat on the right.

"Can I ask you guys something?" Sophia asked. She seemed slightly uncomfortable in all of her heavy gear.

"And what may that be?" Twig asked.

"Why do you guys call me by my first name and not Leeland?" she asked.

Emily shrugged. "Sophia is much prettier than Leeland."

Sophia punched her in the shoulder.

"Yeah. And you're too nice. Leeland sounds like a drill sergeant's name. You're so not the army type," Twig added.

"Yes I am!" Sophia exclaimed.

"I beg to differ," Emily said, laughing.

"You don't strike me as the army type either, Fields. You're too pretty," Sophia teased.

Emily smiled.

"Alright. If I'm not the army type, then let's make a promise when we get back from the mission," Sophia said.

"And what may that be?" Twig asked.

"We're going to get tattoos," she said.

The two other girls stared at Sophia as though she were insane. Emily only had a small one that she had gotten when she was eighteen. It was also on her hip. Her mother didn't even know about it.

She couldn't help but remember how Alison called her "her Mermaid" in all of her diaries. When she had gone to get a tattoo with Sara Harvey, she had almost gotten one of a mermaid but decided against it.

"You want to get a tattoo?" Twig asked as she stared at Sophia's clean and pearly white skin.

"Didn't I just say that?" Sophia asked.

Twig shrugged. "All right then."

"Allen would've wanted to too," Sophia added.

The girls all held their breath as they thought of their friend.

"Yeah, we'll do it. Why not?" Emily asked.

They heard gravel being moved around as the Humvee's door slid open and three heavily geared guys ducked in and sat down across from the three girls.

"Well if it isn't the three stooges," Twig said.

One of the guys grinned at her. If Emily had been straight, she would've probably found him attractive. It was hard to tell exactly what he looked like though with all his gear on.

"Ah sweetheart, you just missed us. We're still fun," he said. His buddies slapped each other laughing.

"Yeah, Morello, I'm still gay and you're still _gross_ ," Twig said.

Sophia blushed as the guy across from her smiled back. Yet it wasn't a rude grin. It was a genuinely interested and friendly grin.

The guy called Morello looked over at Emily and his smile seemed to fade. "And who is this?"

Emily had slipped her sunglasses on and was doing her best not to pay attention.

"That's Private Fields and you'll respect her as such," Meyers said as he slipped into the front with the driver.

The humvee had to have about ten or eleven soldiers in and on it. Two in the front, six in the middle, and probably two or three on top with the big guns. Emily somewhat felt it still wasn't enough.

Morello bit his lip. "Well. I'm Morello. This is Troy. He's a mute. But I just think he don't like to talk. The guy on the end having eye sex with your girl Leeberman is Jackson."

"It's actually Leeland," Sophia corrected. Although she sounded pleased that somebody was calling her by her last name for a change.

"We're not having eye sex, Morello. Knock it off," Jackson said. Emily could see him slightly blushing underneath his helmet.

"I can see your dick hitting the ceiling from here. Stop lying, you sack of shit," Morello joked.

"Cut it out back there Morello. That's your first offense," Meyers said.

"Sorry boss. Just noticing Jackson's got an overly large boner. It's making me start to think I'm gay, I can't stop staring at it," Morello said with a laugh that reminded Emily of a hyena.

"Second offense. Watch it Morello. I'm not laughing," Meyers warned again from the front.

"You're disgusting," Emily spat.

Jackson seemed grateful and so did Sophia who was sitting across from him. She seemed to slightly be looking down at his waist to see if Morello was telling the truth.

"Let me ask you. Why are you out in the goddamn desert fighting this war? You're too pretty to be out here. This is for those who actually should be," Morello said.

"Have you gone out and fought yet, Morello?" Emily asked.

His smile faltered. "I've gone on a couple supply runs. Never had to pull the trigger yet. But that don't mean I'm not ready."

"You're staring at somebody who's taken thirty lives. Somebody who wants nothing more than to put the bad guys in the ground. Am I still too pretty for this desert yet?" Emily asked.

He remained silent and the mute, Troy, nodded his head with a grin on his face.

"Think before you decide to act like a douchebag," Emily said.

She sat back and closed her eyes.

* * *

Emily never would've forgotten the sound. The sound and the notorious heat. Her body felt light as she flew through the air.

Fire. Smoke.

_I smell smoke_ , Emily panicked.

She couldn't move. No. No, get up Fields. Get the fuck up.

She felt the heat of the fire on her ear and heard the sound of Afghan aggressors shouting. They seemed far away.

Emily, wake up now. Please. Get up. You're not safe here, Mermaid. Get up! Emily heard in her ear. But it wasn't her own voice this time. It was Alison's.

"Ali?" she groaned.

Around her, she began to become oriented again. She was laying in the dirt. Why was she on the ground? She was just in the Humvee.

She groaned as she turned over, her arms covered in burns. They hurt. Her legs were hurting. She looked down. They were still intact. She was still intact.

The back of her head was bleeding. She unstrapped her helmet and let it fall to the ground. The picture of her father in his dress blues stared back up at her.

The voices of the aggressors seemed to be growing louder. She got herself to her feet slowly and dizzily. She felt sick. She looked around and saw the mute, Troy, torn in half. Both of his arms were missing.

Emily's throat clenched up in fear. "Twig?! Sophia?!" she screamed.

Behind her she heard a groan. Morello was turning over. Both of his legs were missing from his body. "Shit... Shit! My legs! My fucking legs are gone!" he screamed.

Emily threw herself down next to him and covered his mouth. "Shut up. They're here. They're looking for us. I'm going to check the Humvee for more survivors."

"That's the best thing to do," she heard Meyers' voice say. She turned around. He was clinging the edge of the overturned vehicle with his rifle strapped to his chest. The right half of his face seemed to be melting off so that the bone was exposed. Emily turned away. She couldn't bear to look at him.

"Look for the others. I'll take care of Sergeant Stumpy over here," he said. He was obviously in pain, but he masked it as he limped over beside Morello.

"Does it hurt?" Emily asked him.

He gritted his teeth. "The leg does. Shrapnel, probably. My face? No. They're fourth degree burns. Any nerve receptors that were in the flesh are too damaged or nonexistent to feel it now."

They heard the shout of the terrorists. They were almost there.

"I'll go. Watch him," Emily said as she rounded the other side of the Humvee looking for any signs of life.

She saw what was left of Twig's body lying still on the ground. Fire had engulfed it. "No... No no fuck no!" Emily swore.

She had begun to cry.

_Look for Sophia, Mermaid. She's around here somewhere. You're okay,_ Alison said again.

Emily searched frantically and pulled the bent door of the Humvee off of the vehicle. In the center seat, still strapped in was Sophia's limp body. Across from her, lay a long blood streak where Jackson had been before.

There was too much blood for him to have possibly been alive. Emily crawled up into the Humvee and unstrapped Sophia's body so that it could fall into her arms.

She bent her head down close to Sophia's chest so she could listen to her heartbeat. It was there.

_It's slight, but it's there Em. Get her out of here,_ Alison whispered in her ear.

Emily dragged Sophia out of the Humvee and towards the back where Meyers sat with Morello.

"What the hell happened?" Morello asked groggily.

"Roadside bomb. Numbskulls on the roof didn't signal any soil disturbance. You're in luck, blue balls. Your burns from the bomb that blew your goddamn legs off cauterized the wounds. I don't have to worry about your stupid ass bleeding out. Not yet, anyways," Meyers said.

"Sophia's not breathing," Emily said. She bent down and began to do CPR, the heels of her hands beginning to feel numb.

"Fields," Meyers began.

"No! I won't let her die out here!" Emily shouted.

"Goddammit keep your voice down! Do you want it to rain bullets? Then we'll all be dead out here," Meyers said.

He pulled Morello up who groaned in pain. "Quit your whining, boy."

Sophia's eyes shot open. Emily hadn't noticed that she was missing her left arm and her right hand. There were burns on her throat from the seatbelt of the Humvee.

"Oh, thank god," Emily cried.

"Fields... Where's Twig?" Sophia asked weakly.

"Don't worry about her right now. We have to make sure you don't get sick, okay?" Emily said.

"I'm dying, aren't I?" Sophia asked.

"Sophia-,"

"I know I am. I can feel it. There's something protruding from my back," she said.

Sure enough, Emily's uniform felt warm and wet. She looked down to see Sophia's dark red blood spreading.

"Just don't focus on it. Focus on me," Emily said. "Can you do that?"

_Good, Sweet Emily. This is why you were always my favorite,_ Alison's voice said again in her ear.

Sophia nodded weakly, her eyes beginning to un focus.

"Stay with me," Emily begged. She knew that Sophia wasn't going to hang on for much longer.

_You did everything you could, Em. You're a good soldier. You're an amazing soldier,_ Alison whispered.

Sophia stared off into space, her breathing absent.

Emily began to feel enraged. And that's when it clicked.

She grabbed Sophia's rifle and pushed the safety forward and out of place. If they wanted to play dirty, they'd do more than just play.

"Fuck you all," she cursed under her breath as she saw the Afghan aggressors begin to duck down with their rifles. Emily counted eight in all.

Eight versus three.

Eight versus technically two. But somebody had to watch Morello. And Meyers certainly wasn't in the position to properly shoot a rifle.

Eight versus one. Emily. Emily and Emily alone.

_But you're never really alone. They should be afraid of you, Em. Whoever knew something so deadly could reside under such a pretty face?_ Alison asked in her mind.

Emily climbed back up into the Humvee and towards the radio. It was searching for a signal. She grabbed the mic and held it up to her mouth.

"28 Tactic this is 15 Lima. We've been blown. Three known survivors. I don't have an exact location. But we're surrounded. 8 enemies. Please send backup immediately. I repeat. Please send backup immediately, over," Emily said.

"Lima 15, this is 28 Tactic. We're trying our best to zero in on you. Hold on. Stay out of firing range," a voice spoke over the speaker.

Emily realized if there was anything scarier than -A, it was this.

A couple clangs began to sound as bullets flew near Emily's head. They knew she was there. She ducked out of the Humvee and crawled around the back where Meyers was checking Morello's pockets for ammo.

"You see them too, or is it just me?" he asked. By now, Morello was beginning to turn pale.

They were running out of time.

"No, I see them. Permission to shoot?" Emily asked.

Meyers looked at her with his one good eye as though she had lost it. "Since when do you ever want to shoot anybody?"

"Since now. Permission?" Emily asked again.

Meyers grimaced. "We could die out here. Out of eleven men, we were the only ones who made it."

"Well. Sir, we're going to die out here if you don't let me shoot," Emily said.

Meyers seemed to struggle with his decision before nodding.

Emily cocked her rifle so she could see the aggressors around her.

She pulled the trigger.

* * *

Her arm began to burn. She had been shot. The bullet was still in her skin, she could feel it.

Above them, one of the Army's helicopters had arrived. Emily and Meyers combined had only killed three of the aggressors. At the sound of the Black Hawk, the remaining Afghans scrambled for their holes in the mountains.

The copter finally landed. Emily leaned up against the back of the overturned Humvee with her arm bleeding heavily. She tried to apply pressure to it with her hands but it only made it burn worse.

And yet she did not cry. Not a single tear.

The soldiers aboard the chopper helped carry Morello onto a stretcher as well as Lieutenant Meyers. Despite the shot up arm, Emily helped them load Sophia's body as well.

After the medics on board declared the shot Emily received wasn't going to be fatal, they offered to help take the bullet out of Emily's arm. But she wouldn't let them.

No, she needed to remember this day. This was the day it finally clicked. This was the day she fully became a United States Soldier.

Alison laughed softly in Emily's mind. _That's my Mermaid. This is why I always loved you the best. You really are the loyal one._

* * *

Emily had been visiting Lieutenant Meyers every day since the explosion.

_Since my friends died,_ Emily thought to herself.

She sat by his bedside and wrote her usual letters to Alison. Each of them became more and more harsh. Something about her really had changed.

He had bandages covering the majority of his face. Most of the time, he simply slept. After he was healed enough, the Army had decided to send him home on honorable leave. Whether he would return to his job or not, was a different story. He never talked with Emily much about it. He never talked much with anybody anymore.

Emily was lost in thought next to the beeping monitors of the infirmary.

The bullet in her arm hadn't bothered her in days. Her skin had even begun to heal over it. Occasionally she would run her fingers against it just to feel the hard bump in her arm.

"You look like shit," Meyers mumbled.

Emily looked up at him and stood by his bedside. She dropped the letter she was writing. Her voice had become low and gruff. She couldn't help it. She'd adopted it from the other soldiers. War changes people, they had all told her. She had never really cared to accept it until she realized it had begun to happen to her.

"I'd be lying if I told you that you looked handsome," she said back.

He chuckled, although it was low and weak. "Fields, you're a real pain in my ass."

He paused. "But you're a hero."

Emily smiled coldly. It wasn't genuine. She had no warm feelings towards the day she took a bullet in the arm. "It's all part of the game," she said.

Meyers stared at her long and hard before chuckling again. "It clicked, didn't it? That's why you wanted to shoot those guys after the IED bust. It finally clicked."

Emily shrugged. "I'd be lying if I didn't tell you I had second thoughts about going back out there and doing it all over again. Do me a favor boss... Do you know of any tattoo shops around here?"

"Why the hell are you looking for a parlor?" Meyers asked.

Emily shrugged again. She wasn't in the mood for small talk. "Just a promise I made to somebody."

Meyers didn't answer as he tried to breathe evenly for a few minutes. "It's Afghanistan. You're not going to find one on the corner like in the states. They don't believe in tattoos. However, I know a couple guys in Kabul who run underground ink rinks. They're hard to find. They move around a lot. Probably cause they're afraid they're going to get caught and killed."

Emily smirked. "Even better."

"Hey, Fields. You listen to me. I don't like that look you got in your eye. Don't do anything rash. War does that to people. Sometimes it makes you crazy. I get it. It was terrible what happened to Carter and Leeland and the rest of the guys. But you are not invincible. You are not a solid metal jacket. Hey! Are you listening to me?" Meyers asked sternly as Emily grabbed her letter off the seat and began to walk away.

"Hmm? Yeah. I heard you. Loud and clear," Emily said.

Meyers grimaced. "It's not whether you heard me or not. It's whether you understood me."

Emily turned so she could smile coldly at him. "Where in Kabul?"

* * *

Emily walked around the bustling streets of Kabul, Afghanistan. Meyers had told her where the guy would be. If he was even still there.

She had done her best to wrap herself within Islamic clothing. She covered her body from head to toe in black linen. Thankfully, her skin tone helped keep other Afghans from questioning whether she was American or not.

Emily slipped back through a side street and into an alleyway. She followed up it, trying her best not to step into the puddles that lay along the cobblestone.

Behind the market deli lay a small house. The door was locked. It looked as if nobody had lived there in years. Meyers had told her of this. The more hidden, the better.

She rapped on the door exactly three times. Meyers had warned her not to do any more than three. She heard many locks click as the door pushed open. Behind it stood a burly man with ink covering the majority of his body. He spoke harshly in Farsi, probably demanding who she was.

"Sadiq," was all she said. Meyers had told her to say it. She had no idea what it meant, but it was enough for the man behind the door to straighten up.

"You are American?" he asked.

She nodded silently.

He looked around behind her before opening the door a little further for her to find her way inside. She pulled down the mask so her entire face could show.

The little shop was cluttered from head to toe with bottles of ink and magazines. Along the walls lay dozens of tattoo designs. All of the windows were covered in black drapes. The man locked the doors behind him and turned back towards Emily.

"You are friend of Jason Meyers. American Army," he said.

"Yes," Emily said.

"Is very dangerous for you to be walking around here this time of day. Women especially," he said.

"I'm in the Army too. I'm Private Fields," she said.

His eyes settled. "I see. You come seeking business."

"I come seeking business and information."

"On?"

"The Taliban."

The man sat down at his desk where many of his drawings lay and snorted. "I've got nothing to say about monsters." His accent was strong.

"But you know about them?" Emily said. It sounded more like a statement than a question.

"You assume I do?" He retorted, exactly in the same tone.

Emily grimaced. "You run an illegal tattoo parlor. I bet you know a lot you're not letting on. But I'm sure the Afghani Army would be more than happy to know of your _activities_."

"You come seeking business, and threaten me in home. Very poor choice, girl," he growled.

"That's exactly what I want. _Business_ ," Emily finished.

He sighed. "My name is Arji. Look round. Whatever you want, it is yours."

Emily didn't need much convincing with the drawings on the walls. She handed him a sketch the had been working on in the bunks and infirmary.

He stared at it for a few seconds. "Where?"

She pointed towards her upper arm, around the now fully healed bullet wound. "Here."

Arji stood and moved her long linen drape so he could see the skin where she had been shot. He felt around the skin covered piece of metal. His cold fingers made Emily's hair stand on end.

"It will not be cheap. Especially with the information you seek," he said. His voice had shrunk, as if he had suddenly become intimidated.

Emily smiled sickly. "I don't care. I'll pay you whatever. Just get it done."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so let's get straight to the dirty mess I've created in all of your minds because of this update. 
> 
> Emily has obviously gone completely into "shut down" mode. The killer facade, it's just that. A facade. It's also a method of protecting herself.   
> As we all know, when we get hurt, we feel exceptionally vulnerable. Emily just watched some of her closest friends in her unit die. She was also involved in an explosion herself and is now dealing with the physical and mental repercussions of that. As humans, when we feel pained or vulnerable, we do our best to hide it and try to stuff it into the smallest pocket we have in our minds. And Emily, being in a war zone with no time to heal or relax, keeps feeling that added pressure of horror and vulnerability. So much that she ends up losing a bit of herself. Which is where Alison and the rest of the girls come in (which is of course another part of the story.) 
> 
> The voice Emily hears in her head, again, is not Emily losing her mind. She's not going crazy. Alison is her safe spot. Alison is who she feels that bit of relaxation with. While yes, the Alison in her head isn't necessarily anything like the real Alison, it's the best Emily has and she needs something to take the edge off. 
> 
> As you may have guessed, all of this stuff is occurring over the span of months. On Wattpad, the chapter names usually help the reader identify where we were in Emily's deployment. I believe I wrote it that during these chapters we were at least through days 180-184. 
> 
> Any questions, concerns, etc, you know where to find me (down below in the comment section.) 
> 
> I hope to see you all soon.   
> Next update is on Friday. 
> 
> Lots of love.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's that day! 
> 
> UPDATE DAY!
> 
> Very excited to share some of this new material with you. 
> 
> Enjoy and please stick with me while I hit some pretty important points down at the bottom of the page. 
> 
> Read on my friends.

Alison sat at her desk in Rosewood High. Stacks of papers sat next to her. She couldn't believe how many she had to grade before she left to visit Charlotte. There had to have been hundreds.

She heard a rapping on the door and looked up. "Come in!" she called.

"Mind if I interrupt?" a tall dark haired man asked. He was attractive, and his words seemed kind. Yet he reminded Alison of a raven.

Alison set down her pen. "Not at all. I'm sorry. You are?"

"Oh, my bad. How rude of me. I didn't even introduce myself. I'm Dr. Rollins. Elliot Rollins. I'm Charlotte's Doctor over at the sanitarium," he said.

He held out his hand for Ali to shake. She took it. She felt a strange vibe from him. He smiled warmly and pulled up one of the chairs by the computer desk so he could face Alison.

"Hi. Just curious, how did you know I worked here?" Alison asked.

He shrugged. "Charlotte talks a lot about you. She might have mentioned it once or twice."

Alison smirked. "You're a good listener."

His eyes became cold. "No. I'm a good doctor. And as her doctor I'm here to deliver some news."

"And this couldn't wait until I visited her tonight? I'm sorry, Dr. Rollins. But I'm very busy. As you can see-,"

"Elliot. Call me Elliot," he cut her off.

She was beginning to feel uneasy. Alison tapped her pen against the desk restlessly.

"Elliot, please just tell me what you need to tell me," Alison said.

He clicked his tongue and sighed. "I think Charlotte is a danger to herself. I believe she should be moved to one of the more protective sanitariums."

Alison blinked. "What? What the hell are you talking about?"

Elliot scratched the back of his neck nervously and reached out to take Alison's hands in his. "She talks of suicide constantly. It wasn't an issue until recently. She's been stashing her medications. We think she was going to try to overdose."

"How long ago did this start?" Alison asked, enraged.

She pulled her hands away from Elliot with a disgusted expression on her face.

"About three months ago," Rollins admitted.

"Are you telling me that my sister was suicidal for three fucking months and none of you assholes planned on telling me?" Alison said harshly. 

"It's not that we didn't plan on telling you, Ms. Dilaurentis. We just simply didn't wish to alarm you. Patients do this from time to time. They get depressed due to their surroundings. We figured Charlotte was beginning to fully let it get to her that she was stuck in Brookhaven and wouldn't be getting out anytime soon. We figured she'd move out of the phase. And she hasn't. We're beginning to think of it as a serious offense and we highly recommend you agree to the transfer," Elliot said.

Alison stared out the window. She didn't know what to think. Brookhaven was the closest sanitarium to Alison's apartment. It took over once Radley had been shut down and transformed into a hotel.

"If not Brookhaven, then where?" she asked.

Elliot sighed. "The closest high security sanitarium is in Philadelphia. It's about an hour and a half away. I can get Charlotte a good room, and great care. She won't ever ask for another thing."

"She's not moving," Alison growled.

"Excuse me?" Elliot asked.

"I said she's not moving. I'm her caretaker. And I say she doesn't go anywhere. Brookhaven is her home. It's what I can afford. It's where she'll stay," Alison said.

Elliot didn't seem pleased but he sat back and threw up his hands. "As the doctor, I highly recommend transfer. But I can't argue with your demand."

Alison returned her attention to her papers. She didn't want to speak to Elliott any more than she had to.

He noticed this and stood up, moving the chair back in place. "You sound as if you have abandonment issues," he said.

Alison scoffed without looking up from her the paper she was grading. "Wow, you can get all of that from us talking for five minutes? You must really be a miracle shrink."

He smirked. "I can tell by the way you so closely insisted Charlotte stay here. You didn't want her to be far away from you. So I assumed."

Alison set her pen down and glared at him. "Well don't."

Elliot wasn't sure what to do. He sat down again in one of the nearest student desks. "Okay, mind if I tell you something? It's going to sound a little off, but you'll probably get it."

Alison shook her head. "I don't have time for you, or this. I have work to do. And a meeting to get to."

She stood up and grabbed her bag. She almost left the room.

"You miss somebody you love," Elliot said suddenly.

Alison stopped dead in her tracks. "How do you know that?" she asked.

Elliot smiled. He'd won. "Like I said. Charlotte has told me a thing or two about you. She mentioned a name. Emily."

 _Emily. Emily Fields the love of your life,_ Alison thought to herself. She shook her head.

"She was my best friend," Alison said.

"Was? Did she pass away?" Elliot asked.

"She moved away. To California. We broke off," Alison said.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Elliot said. He didn't seem all that sorry. Not really.

"I don't like speaking about her. Charlotte knows that. I don't even talk to her about Emily," Alison said.

"And why is that?" Elliot asked.

"Is everything a problem that needs to be solved with you?" She spat.

He shrugged. "I'm a miracle shrink. I believe anything leads to everything."

Alison sat back in her seat. She didn't know what to say or why she was talking to Rollins. He was annoying. He annoyed her. And yet she felt as though she couldn't move away from the raven haired man.

"Let me take you for coffee," he said.

Alison pondered this for a couple of minutes before giving in. "After I visit Charlotte tonight."

* * *

_Whoever's reading this. I don't know who. I have been tracking the Taliban best I can thanks to Arji. Every time I kill one of them, he tattoos my arm. It's been an exchange each. I pay for information with money and a tattoo, and he gives me what I want._

_We've infiltrated at least seven camps. I've anonymously tipped the army off with every bit of information Arji gives me. The death toll on my shoulders is above 80. It has to be. And yet. I don't feel a damn thing. What a blessing, but also a curse._

_Is it truly this possible to feel so inhuman? So angry? I don't flinch when I pull a trigger anymore. I live to pull the trigger._

Emily stopped writing and angrily snapped her pencil, sending splinters flying across the tent.

Before Meyers was sent home, he sat in the infirmary on the edge of his bed in his civilian clothing.

Emily was standing in the corner, her arm still bandaged from the many tattoos dug into her skin. Starting from the top of her arm was a large beautiful blue mermaid with flowing blonde hair and a silver trident in her hands. By her head rest a very realistic tattoo of a compass pointing towards the ends of the earth. All down Emily's arm underneath the mermaid were countless waves, fish, and some of the most beautiful ships. It was as if Emily had the entire ocean in the palm of her hand, so to speak.

The mermaid had been inspired by Alison. Emily had no doubt about it. But she never admitted that to Arji no matter how many times he asked.

Meyers had stared at Emily's heavily muscled arm and shook his head in annoyance. "I really hope you don't get any more."

"I'm going to find them. Arji is helping me. He knows where the Taliban is. No matter where they move," Emily had said.

"You're losing your mind, Fields," Meyers had stated.

Emily stared at him incredulously. "I'm only doing what you wanted me to do, Lieutenant."

"No, you're becoming a solider who has no problem with taking people's lives. You're taking too many lives. When I said 'let it click', I meant don't be such a pussy. Take a life and get over it because that's your job. You're out here to fight and protect. Not become addicted to spilling human blood!" Meyers yelled.

A couple of the medics in the infirmary had looked in on them suspiciously. Emily chuckled.

"I'm not addicted to killing."

"Then what the hell's wrong with you?" Meyers had said. "You're becoming a monster. The Fields I knew was afraid to kill a goddamn mosquito."

Emily just stared down at her boots. He couldn't have possibly been right. She wasn't a killer. She certainly didn't enjoy it. Did she?

Emily laid on her cot and reminisced on the day Meyers left. In a way, she envied him. He got to go home to the people he loved. To the woman he loved. But of course it came with a price. Half of his face, and half of his life were left behind in the scorching Afghanistan desert.

She was the only one in her unit left. Whether it be dead or alive. It felt so weird to be alone. She tried to breathe evenly and concentrate on anything other than the anger she had in her head.

 _"A lot of you will be heading to Afghanistan. You will be fighting among the world's most powerful military unit. Take pride in this! But also remember. Some of you will die. There's no guarantee you'll come back alive. And there's no guarantee that if you do come back alive, it'll be in one piece! It's better to start expelling all of those large hopes before they bury you in the dry Afghani soil,"_ _her drill sergeant said once all of the girls had crowded around their bunks._

_Emily was nervous. She didn't know what to think. The majority of these girls were heavily built with their minds set on being deployed._

_Emily didn't want to leave the States. She didn't want to go across the ocean and go into combat. She joined so she'd have money for her mother's care, and so she could make something of herself for her dad. But she had no intentions on shipping out._

Of course, Emily didn't have much of a choice. When she got the news that she would be deploying to the Middle East, she had cried in her apartment in Malibu for hours. She couldn't tell if it was out of sheer terror, anger, depression or disappointment.

So much had changed since then. Emily couldn't picture herself anywhere other than Afghanistan. She couldn't imagine waking up in an atmosphere where there wasn't any fighting and gunshots. Or where she wouldn't see the large mountains and the beautiful sunsets that came with it. It was such a gorgeous land. Take away the aggressors, and it was stunning.

That's why, when Emily was resting on her cot, she didn't expect to hear one of the officers outside of her tent slip inside with a couple of official government stamped letters.

Emily stood up in attention as the officer approached her. The other woman shooed her attention and ordered her to stand at ease. Emily, keeping a stone cold expression, sat back down on her cot.

She hoped she would be taken out on a convoy mission to Kabul. Maybe then she'd get to see Arji and have the final piece of her tattoo added.

The officer however, didn't say that as she handed Emily the letter with her name on it. "What's this?" she asked.

"Official documentation indicating your leave date. Start packing. You ship out to the US in two days," she said as she began to file through the other letters.

Emily stood back up in horror. "No, Ma'am, I'm not leaving."

The officer seemed taken aback. "Pardon?"

"I'm not leaving Afghanistan. I have work to do here. I-I'm not even done with my tour," Emily stuttered.

"Yes, you are. It's been nine months Private. You were supposed to go home three months ago when your Humvee was blown by an IED. You're lucky you got to stay here to finish your tour. But your service is no longer needed," the officer said.

Emily ran her hands through her hair. "Of course I'm needed. I'm the reason we've found seven Taliban bases. Eighty eight deaths. I'm needed here."

"Private, I'm going to tell you this one more time. Partly because you're acting strange. Usually people are dying to go home. And partly because you're scaring the shit out of me and you're talking like a serial killer. You're not. There were men and women before you, and there will be others after you. Start packing. Or I'll send you on the first flight out tonight with a psych eval," the officer said threateningly as she left the tent.

Emily could've torn her hair out.

 _No. No! You can't let her tell you that, Em. You belong here. You know you do. This is the first war you've been in that you ACTUALLY know how to fight. For Sophia, Twig, and Allen. For me,_ Alison said in Emily's head.

Ever since the Humvee had gone up in flames, Alison had been with Emily every step of the way. She was often who she consulted when she needed something, or somewhere to go. She was so alone after her friends perished. Alison kept her company.

"What do I do Ali? I've got nowhere to go," Emily said, miserable as she stared at the letter.

No answer.

She heard shouts from outside as a couple of Humvees loaded for an emergency mission to a small village about thirty miles west of Kabul.

She grabbed her helmet from underneath her cot.

_Be safe, Mermaid._

* * *

The Humvee bounced along the rugged terrain of the Afghani mountains. Emily stared out the windows. She would miss this. Even though she wasn't technically allowed to go on missions now that she was getting ready to leave, she couldn't help it. She had become addicted to the hunt.

The other heavily geared soldiers around her were all weary and exhausted. None of them bothered to speak with her or each other. That was fine with Emily though. She didn't talk to many other people.

She felt her arm where the tattoo was and within the eye of the compass lay the bullet underneath her skin. It almost felt normal to have it.

"Five minutes out. Be ready. These fuckers aren't going to be jacking themselves off," the commanding officer said from the front.

The Humvee stopped. The sun was beginning to set. Outside, Emily could hear gunshots as the Taliban went from small house to house and kicked down doors. People were screaming.

The doors of the Humvee opened and Emily jumped out and followed the line of the six other soldiers who were in the vehicle with her.

"Buddy system. Don't let them see you. All orders to shoot. Go. Save who you can," the one in front said.

Emily followed the guy in front of her. He ducked down behind a low ridge wall where a Taliban guard was standing so that they wouldn't be seen.

She could feel her heart racing in her chest.

 _This is it,_ Alison said.

"You're Private Fields, are you not?" he asked.

"In the flesh," Emily answered.

"Corporal Mackey. I have a plan," he said.

"Shoot," Emily said.

"You take out the insurgent and cover for me. I'll head around the corner and see what's going on in that building. I'll wait for you out front so we can clear it," he said.

"We don't have a team. There could be twenty insurgents in there. That's a very stupid plan," Emily hissed.

"Do you have a better one? Besides, I'm higher than you are in rank. You do as I say," Mackey said.

Emily wanted to argue. After all, she'd done this countless times. If he wanted to get himself killed, so be it. Emily had her own mission to look forward to.

She overheard the rumor that one of the militant leaders of the Taliban in this sector of the desert was in the village. Emily could finally find him and make him pay for the deaths of all her friends. She had been looking for him. It was why she had gone to Arji for information to begin with.

Mukhtar Musab. He had killed thousands of people. He was responsible for all the strikes against her unit. She had been looking for him. And now she'd finally found him.

Emily crouched down low and unsheathed her knife. Behind the wall, the insurgent stood and faced the opposite way. Emily jumped up and covered his mouth from behind as he dropped his gun.

Her fist met contact with his face and she dragged him around to where Mackey sat amazed.

"You do this often?" he asked.

She laughed. "Just go. I'll be there in a few. Keep a look out."

"What're you going to do?" he asked nervously.

Emily shoved him. "Corporal, I mean it. Go."

He didn't stick around to ask much more as he began to crawl around the corner and make his way towards the house where two masked Afghan guards stood out front.

Gunshots continued around the village. Emily showed the insurgent her knife. "Speak or this ends up in your throat. Or maybe your eye since you're okay with dying for Allah. I know somebody who once did that with _his_ knife."

The terrorist tried to get away but Emily took the knife and stabbed him in the leg. She pretended to wince as he cried out. "Damn. That would've been bad if that nicked your femoral artery. Then you surely would've died. And you're no good to me if you're dead."

"Please. Do not kill me. No harm," he begged.

"Oh, good. You speak English! It's so hard to come across you terrorist roaches that actually speak English after you've tried to murder innocent people in this beautiful country. This makes it all so much easier," she said.

He groaned and Emily forced a hand over his mouth. "You know the one thing I miss? I used to swim. In college. And the thing is, they always told us, even if we bled, we had to keep fighting. And I've been searching and fighting every damn day for three months. I'm a bit tired of it. So you're going to tell me. Where is Mukhtar Musab?"

She dug the knife deeper into his leg and began to twist it. He tried to scream but Emily's hand over his mouth muffled it.

She let go and she saw the tears streaming from the corners of his eyes. "He is not here. I do not know who that is!"

Emily dug the knife even deeper. "You're lyingggg to me," she said in a sweet singsong voice.

The insurgent shook his head. "Please, no, I swear."

Emily pulled the knife out of his leg and brought the blade down close to his inner thighs. She smirked. "I'm gay, but. We both know it's not going to feel good where this knife is going. I mean, I like sex. I like it a lot. I couldn't imagine not having my dick to have sex with if I were a guy." 

The terrorist's eyes grew wide as he began to cry harder. "I know nothing!" he yelled.

"Ohh but I think you do know something. Otherwise you wouldn't be here. Tic tock," she said as the blade began to cut into the linen between his legs.

He seemed to look as though he were about to throw up. "He's here. He's in the village."

Emily stopped and looked up at him. "Where is he?"

"I don't kn-,"

She began to cut again.

"No no!! Wait! Wait! He's in the building. He's talking to the village leader," the man cried.

"Why?" Emily asked.

"He wants the children! He needs new soldiers. He wants supplies. He wants it all! Please don't cut off my penis!" the man yelled.

Emily stood up and smiled. "Oh. Sweetie, didn't you hear me? I'm gay. I don't want to touch that. I wasn't planning on it. Just a little scare tactic. I was planning on doing this though," she said.

He looked confused for a couple of seconds before Emily bent down and slit his throat. He fell forward and began to choke, his throat gushing blood into the sand.

She pushed her way forward where Mackey was already situated. "What took you so long?" he asked.

"Shut up. Do you know who's in that building?" she asked.

"No, but there's a meeting going on. It seems pretty important," he said as he handed Emily his binoculars.

She looked through them and saw the village leader sitting on a mat being held at aggressor gunpoint.

"It's Mukhtar Musab. It's got to be," she whispered.

"Wait, Mukhtar Musab? As in _the_ Mukhtar Musab?" Mackey asked as he stole his binoculars back to see.

Emily didn't answer. She turned to Mackey. "I have a job to do. As you know, they call me The Hunter. And I have been searching for him for months. You will not get in my way. I've gone through too many of these douchebags and now I finally have him. I'm going to take the shot."

Mackey scoffed. "I don't care if you're Barack Obama or Beyoncé. You're not going in there without a team. They have a hostage. Hey! I'm speaking to you!"

Emily had stood up now and was edging along the wall towards the house. Mackey followed along behind her dumbly, unsure of what else to do.

"Quit following me," Emily spat.

He glared. "I'm not leaving. You can't do this alone."

Emily pondered it for a second and sighed. "Fine. But you're staying behind me. You shoot only when I shoot, and you go where I tell you to go. Deal?"

He didn't seem like he wanted to agree but he nodded reluctantly.

Emily positioned her rifle around the corner and shot one of the first guards and felt as Mackey took out the second.

 _Don't do anything you're going to regret, Mermaid. You have to come home to me,_ Alison said in her head.

Emily stopped in her tracks and felt the sweat dripping down her forehead. "Ali?" She asked.

"Who?" Mackey whispered.

"Nothing," Emily shot and began to draw closer to the building.

She ran followed closely by Mackey and they ducked underneath the building's window. Inside, the members in the room were speaking Farsi.

Emily strained her ears. "I hear two voices. Plus the third man, he's breathing heavily. I'm assuming he's the gunman."

"You _are_ good at this," Mackey whispered.

"Practice makes perfect," Emily said.

She let her rifle's barrel slip under the door. "Do me a favor, Mackey. Cover me. Make sure there aren't any goons wandering around."

She looked through the bottom crack to see a tall man standing in front of her, his back turned to her. The village leader sat facing her, his long grey beard seeming to grow whiter by the second.

Using the best guess she could make, she shot the rifleman in the foot. He doubled over in pain and began to scream. Inside, the room began to turn to turmoil.

Emily kicked down the door. "Put your fucking hands above your head!" she screamed.

The gunman tried to point his gun at Emily but she shot him in the chest. He fell backwards and almost onto the village leader who looked beyond startled. Mackey rushed over to the older man and pulled him out of Emily's way.

"Mukhtar Musab, we finally meet," Emily said.

The man who was in front of her turned around. He had a black turban around his head and a camouflage jacket with camouflage pants. His eyes were a dark black wth a long beard to compliment it. His olive skin tone was slightly darker than Emily's, though not by much.

He chuckled. "You must be The Hunter. I heard you've been looking for me. Though, none of the rumors about your appearance were accurate. You are a woman."

Emily fingered the trigger. "You heard right because I'm standing right in front of you. And I'm about to blow a fucking hole into your fucking skull."

He continued to hold his hands above his head. "You probably have many questions," he said.

"No, not really. Just one. Are you prepared to meet your beloved Allah?" Emily asked quietly.

Her heart was pounding in her ears.

 _That's it, Em. Hurt him. Make him suffer,_ Alison whispered.

"I've never been more prepared in my life," he said with a sick grin on his face.

_For Sophia, Twig, Allen, Jackson, and Troy._

The sound of a gunshot echoed throughout the room. The loud noise of a body hitting the sandy floors followed it.

It was finally over.

And home seemed so much closer than before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. We finally begin the long road home.
> 
> Emily is getting ready to return to Alison, her mom, and possibly the other girls. The gory parts of this story, for the most part, are over. If you've made it this far, I congratulate you and thank you for sticking with me and giving me the benefit of the doubt. Things have to go bad before they get better. (My life's motto.)
> 
> Now, I want to get into this and hit my point on the head as hard as I can so that I can avoid it here. On Wattpad, I had a reader who had tried to find fault in my writings regarding the Islamic religion and the Muslim culture. I want to state this here and stress it. 
> 
> I AM NOT ISLAMOPHOBIC.
> 
> I can't tell you how much I respect the peoples who follow Islam no matter where they're from. My best friend since Kindergarten is Muslim and I love her and her family more than anything in the world and they love me even if I'm Jewish (But I'm not Zionist.) Even parts of my family are from Lebanon. If you are looking to find fault with how I write TERRORISTS, this is not the story for you. 
> 
> When I describe the characters who are attacking Emily, I am describing the lowlife terrorists that terrorize even people of their OWN religion. Terrorists are terrorists no matter what religion or ethnicity. I refuse to blame an entire Islamic culture based on a few bad eggs. Just as I would hope they don't do to Israelis or Americans. The list is endless. 
> 
> I never wish to get political, but the one thing I just cannot stand is when people accuse me of trying to make certain peoples/religions look bad. That is never my intention and it never will be. 
> 
> Emily is obviously struggling with her own internal battles. She's trying. But it's going to take a lot more growth.
> 
> My next update is Sunday.  
> Be there or be square.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas to all if you celebrate! 
> 
> I don't, but I know many of you do. I hope you all have a healthy, happy holiday! 
> 
> And happy late Chanukah to those who celebrated that! *raises hand and jumps for joy*
> 
> And of course, whatever other holidays are celebrated this month, happy holidays!
> 
> Let's get right to it.

The C-130 landed on the airstrip of Harrisburg Air National Guard Base at Harrisburg International Airport, Pennsylvania.

The entire way home, Emily couldn't think of sleep. It was to the point where she felt as if she had a giant bullet sitting in her brain instead of her arm.

All of the other soldiers stood, stretched, and cheered after the plane had finally hit the Tarmac. They felt so amazing to finally be home.

Emily didn't. She would've killed to go back. There, she belonged with a job to do, here, she was a ruthless killer in the eyes of millions of Americans.

She grabbed her pack from underneath the seat. She had to change out of her uniform before she went to visit her mother.

 _Maybe you shouldn't, Mermaid. I think it's time that she learned the truth,_ Alison said in her ear.

She had a point. It was getting out of her control. She was home now. There was no point fully hiding anymore. The tour was over. And the pay was nice. All her mother could really do was get mad at her and even that wouldn't last long.

As soon as the back hatch opened, all of the soldiers followed each other onto the runway where hundreds of soldiers' families waited with signs and thousands of American flags.

"Emily Fields!" a voice yelled.

Emily spun around and watched as a blonde in the crowd began making her way towards her. Emily's nerves were still shot from the war.

Hanna ran towards her and jumped into her arms. "I thought you died, oh my god," she cried into her shoulder.

Emily uncomfortably touched her friend's back. "You didn't tell anybody where I was, did you?"

"No, of course not. You asked me not to," Hanna said, pulling away.

"Well. I've asked you to do a lot of things that you don't do," Emily said.

"That's true. But I figured with a secret that big, it was probably best untouched," Hanna said.

Emily smiled and hugged Hanna again. "I missed you Han."

"You and me both. I didn't know when you'd be coming home. But your mom told me," she said.

"Wait... What?" Emily choked.

"You didn't know? No, I didn't tell her. Your mom found out from somebody else. She called me. And she's expecting a visit from you. Which is why I'm here. Because I'm going to take you home," Hanna said.

"Home to Malibu?" Emily asked hopefully.

"Home to Rosewood. Besides... There's other stuff we have to talk about. All of the girls are coming in. It's as if you came home just in time," Hanna said as she began to steer Emily away from the large crowd of soldiers still unloading the C-130.

"Came home in time for what?" Emily asked suspiciously.

Hanna shifted her weight uneasily. "We will discuss this. Just not here. Not right now. My best friend just came back from the fucking desert. I think she deserves a drink."

"Now there's something I haven't had in a while."

* * *

Hanna and Emily walked into what used to be Radley. It had now become The Radley, a prestigious hotel and bar. And it was absolutely gorgeous.

"Your mom owns this now?" Emily asked in awe.

Hanna shrugged. "It's nothing big."

She signaled to a waiter. "Two mango margaritas please."

"Make mine a scotch. Straight," Emily said.

Hanna seemed surprised. "Since when?"

"Since I got back from fighting in a desert," Emily said.

"So, now?"

"Basically," Emily laughed.

She slipped off her jacket so she could free her body from the infernal heat. Hanna stared at her large arm with its primarily blue ink sleeve.

"When'd you get that?" She asked.

"When I was in the sandbox," Emily said, her voice drawling with boredom.

"Why?" Hanna asked.

The waiter brought their drinks over and left the check.

"I don't want to talk about it, Hanna," Emily said.

"Why?" Hanna asked again.

"Because I don't. That's all that needs to be said," Emily said threateningly.

The table grew quiet.

"How is the fashion world?" Emily asked as she tried to eagerly change the subject.

She loved Hanna, but there was no way she could speak to her about the horrors of war. She'd have too many questions and Emily simply didn't have the patience to answer them all.

And every time she closed her eyes, she saw the Humvee explode all over again. She saw Twig burning, Morello's missing legs, Troy's body torn in half, Jackson's blood stain, and Sophia dying in her arms.

 _They all died there. They all died there, and you're sitting here,_ Alison's bitchy tone spat.

"It's fine. When I got your letter, I was in Milan. After I got home, I worked in New York for a couple months and then your mom told me she knew about you being in the army. And that's when...," Hanna paused.

"When what?" Emily asked, nervously. Please don't be my mom, she thought to herself.

"That was when Ali called us. I came in early, hoping to catch your flight," Hanna said.

It wasn't what Emily thought it was going to be. Being in this town made her feel on edge. She felt as though -A was running around in a black hoodie. Back then, all she wanted to do was unmask Charlotte and make it stop. But now she was afraid she might permanently make it stop. With her rifle.

"Well. You got to see me. After this drink, I'm taking the first trip out to Cali," Emily said as she finished her scotch.

"What? Didn't you hear what I just said? Ali called us. All of us. Including you," Hanna said.

"Why, Hanna? Why is she calling us?" Emily asked. "Is that how it's going to be again? We're all going to go running back to Alison?"

"What the fuck is wrong with you? Will you even hear me out?" Hanna asked angrily.

Emily sat back and grit her teeth. "Go on."

Hanna crossed her arms over her chest. Emily could see she was fuming. "Charlotte was murdered three nights ago. Ali called absolutely hysterical."

Emily was slightly shocked and happy, but hid it behind her poker face.

"Charlotte had it coming, Hanna. She was evil. She tortured us. I'd much rather be snuggling with Osama Bin Laden then sit in this town with _Crazy_ written all over it," Emily snapped.

"Trust me. I was happy too when that bitch died. But Ali wants you to see her. You owe her that much. You were the one who gave up on her," Hanna said.

Emily shot out of her seat. "Let's get one thing straight, Hanna. I never gave up on anyone. I would've taken Alison with me to California, but she insisted that she stay here and take care of the person who tried to kill us. She's the one who gave up on _me_. She gave up on us for the person who ruined our lives and broke our families apart."

"But you're in love with her!" Hanna yelled.

The lobby had gone quiet. The faint sound of heels clicking against the linoleum flooring seemed to grow louder as Ashley Marin rounded the corner.

When she saw Emily, her eyes lit up. She walked over to her and gripped the Brunette in her long arms as though she had found her daughter after years.

Emily was so big compared to her, it seemed almost unreal to Hanna.

"I knew I'd heard Hanna's voice. I could only imagine who she'd be talking to," Ashley said.

Emily smiled, temporarily forgetting her heated argument. "Hi, Ms. Marin."

Ashley eyed Emily's tattoos but knew better than to ask. "I hope you'll be staying? We'd love to have dinner with you. You can stay in a room free."

Emily sighed. She had to visit her mother anyways. She smiled tightly. "I guess for a couple of nights. But I insist, let me pay."

"Really, Honey. You deserve to sleep in a nice warm bed without worrying about anything. How long were you deployed?" Ashley asked.

"Nine months. And thank you," Emily said as sweetly as she could.

"Emily?" a high voice asked. Emily and Hanna looked around to see Aria and Spencer standing nearby timidly.

"Is that really you?" Spencer asked.

Emily felt extremely red in the face. She couldn't believe they were all seeing her now. They were all seeing her in uniform.

"Yeah... It is," Emily said.

Ms. Marin smiled and walked away. She noticed Aria had cut her hair extremely short and looked almost blonde. Spencer, who was towering over her, had cut her hair into bangs. It wasn't what Emily was used to, but overall, they were the same people.

For the first time in months, she felt her heart begin to feel emotion. "I missed you guys so much," Emily said.

They all collided into each other hugging. Aria and Spencer were crying.

"What the hell? Why didn't you tell us you went into the Army? Or that you were in Afghanistan?" Spencer asked disapprovingly.

"Because Spence, I know you would've been exactly like this," Emily said.

"Well be glad we are. It's taking everything I have not to throttle you with my little fists," Aria said.

"Hey, she came home. That's all that matters," Hanna piped up.

"Have you seen Ali yet?" Spencer asked.

Emily shook her head. She didn't want to. And that was what was weird. She did, but she also didn't. She wasn't who she used to be. It was bad enough the other girls found out, but now Alison would have to too.

"I think I have to do it alone. Ali and I didn't end well. And I'm a soldier. I don't run away from the sounds of chaos," Emily said.

"She's a mess," Aria said. "I visited her. It was like a bomb exploded in her apartment. She hasn't left her bed since it happened."

"Do they have any leads?" Emily asked.

"No. They don't know anything. But I'd imagine we're all suspects," Spencer said.

"Emily has an alimony, though," Hanna said.

"It's an _alibi_ Hanna, and I'm sure the cops will have something to say to her as well," Spencer corrected.

Emily slipped her army jacket back on and did up the zipper. "I better go. I have to see my mom. And Alison."

"Are you sure you're ready for that?" Hanna asked worriedly.

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

* * *

Emily walked into her old house using the key her mother kept under the potted plant on the porch. Her tan boots squeaked against the wooden floors. The old familiar chestnut smell filled her nose.

"Mom?" Emily called out.

She heard a creaking as Pam wheeled herself out into the living room. She no longer had all of her hair, and looked older than ever. Emily's heart broke the minute her mother laid eyes on her.

"Oh, Emmy," Pam cried.

Emily made her way over to her mom and ducked down to kiss her on the forehead. She hugged her the best she could in her wheelchair.

"Why would you go to that nasty place without telling me? What if something happened to you?" Pam sobbed.

Emily leaned away. "I didn't want to worry you. And somebody had to pay for your treatment. You couldn't on your own."

"But what about Pepperdine?" Pam asked worriedly.

"College really wasn't my thing," Emily admitted sheepishly.

"Oh, you look so grown up. Your father would be so proud of you. If only he could see you standing here in that uniform. Bless his heart," Pam whispered.

Emily rocked back and forth uneasily as she pushed her mother to the living room and sat down on the couch opposite her.

"Who told you? About me being in the military?" Emily asked.

"I figured you'd ask that. A Lieutenant Meyers called. He said he was in your unit in Afghanistan. He was rotated out. Sent home on medical leave. But he wanted me to know that you were one of the bravest he ever had the privilege of working with. He warned me you may come back different," she said.

Emily looked down in shame. Of course he would've called.

 _Secrets don't stay secrets, Em. You should know that one by now_ , Alison said in her ear.

"What happened out there, Emmy? What aren't you telling me?" Pam asked.

Emily wouldn't meet her eyes. "I'd rather not speak of it."

"Were you hurt?" Pam asked again.

The flashbacks commenced _. The explosion. The blood. There was so much blood._

"I was in IED explosion. All of the people on my convoy were killed except for me, Meyers, and a soldier named Morello. He lost both of his legs," Emily said.

"And you walked off okay?" Pam asked. She was crying now.

"I was shot. In the arm. Both my forearms are scarred from being burned pretty badly. I have a couple scars on my chest from the seat belts. And I have tainted memory," Emily finished.

They sat in silence, neither of them finding the courage to look at each other.

Emily peeled off her jacket so she could show her mom the burns on both of her forearms. Arji had done a good job of making the burns on her left arm seem like waves, but on the right, it just seemed like warped skin.

Pam felt them with her trembling fingers. "This is pretty. I never thought you'd get them," she said.

Emily looked down and realized she was referring to her ink sleeve, not the burns.

Emily nodded. "The artist was something himself. He gave me information in return for business. Information on the Taliban. Locations, times, influential leaders, everything."

Pam tried to take it all in. "And I'm assuming you had to... Do things you regret."

Emily stared at her boots. "There were many things I did in Afghanistan. Killing the people who tried to kill me and endanger the people living back home was never one of the regrets."

Pam smiled softly, but Emily could tell it wasn't real. It was pained and forced.

"You didn't have any other choice, though. It's okay."

Emily looked away from her mother who was still slightly crying. In fact, she'd had a choice when it came to many of the men she fought. She didn't have to kill all of them. And yet she did. She wanted to.

"Yeah. It was just what I had to do," Emily lied.

Her mother felt up her arm towards the mermaid and the compass by it's head. Her fingers brushed the bullet underneath Emily's skin. Her eyebrows narrowed.

"What's that?" Pam asked.

"Mom-," Emily began.

"What is that, Emmy?" Pam demanded.

Emily bit her lip. "It's a bullet. It's where I was shot."

"Why didn't they take it out?" Pam asked.

Emily sighed. "They didn't need to. I let it heal."

Her mom sucked in a breath. "Why? Why would you want to remember that?"

Emily stood up and turned away from her mother. She pulled her jacket back in place so the Mermaid would be covered, and the ocean buried beneath it.

"I don't know," Emily lied again.

She didn't want to talk about it any longer. Her mother seemed to understand and smiled to herself calmly.

"You're home now. And I'm assuming you've heard about other situations as well," Pam said.

"As in Charlotte being killed? Yeah. I heard," Emily said.

Pam fixed her wedding ring. She still never took it off. Even though Emily's dad had been dead for seven years now.

"Please Emmy. Tell me you didn't have anything to do with that."

Emily turned around, her expression repulsed. "I wasn't even in country. I was off fighting bigger problems. Charlotte wasn't a part of my life anymore. I don't need to worry about her."

Pam sighed. "I wasn't going to tell you this. Alison came over the day Charlotte passed. She was looking for you. She was a mess. I told her you were still in Greece."

"Ali? She came here?" Emily asked.

Pam nodded. "She's been living here ever since. I see her every now and then at the grocery store. She's teaching at  Rosewood."

Emily felt light headed. "But why me? Why here?"

Pam shook her head. "I don't know, Emmy. I know how you used to feel about her. It would be wrong of me to tell you I didn't suspect the same feelings when she came over here. She wanted you to be the first to know. And when you weren't here, she was devastated."

"But she knew I was in California," Emily objected.

"Emily, I don't think she knew what to think. She was so confused and shaken up. I think she just wanted to see you. And this was the only place she could run," Pam said.

Emily sat down in shock.

 _I miss you,_ Alison said in her head.

But it wasn't the Alison Dilaurentis she was now. It was the Alison Dilaurentis she knew in Afghanistan. The one who begged her to pull the trigger.

Emily blocked it out. "I have to see her. It's been five years. And after all that time, she still came here."

Pam could see Emily mapping things out in her brain. "Emmy, I have cancer. I'll still be sitting here when you get back. Go see her."

Emily put her head in her hands. "I can't."

"Why can't you?" Pam asked sternly.

"Because I'm a killer, mom. I threw Ali away and I joined the army and deployed and lied to her. I lied to everybody, including you. She probably hates me," Emily said.

"She doesn't hate you. Why would she come looking for you if she hated you? Emmy, she misses you. Go see her," Pam repeated.

Emily stood up and hugged her mother. "I missed you when I was gone. Afghanistan's no Rosewood."

Pam smiled. "You're an amazing soldier like your father. I missed you. He missed you too."

* * *

Emily took her mom's car and followed the directions Hanna had texted her to Alison's apartment.

It was near her old house, but not quite. She had heard Jason still lived there but only came every once in a while. He had been going back and forth from his apartment in Florida and their old house.

Alison couldn't stand to stay in it after her mother passed away and Charlotte was caught. So for the majority of the time, it just stood empty.

Emily climbed the stairs of the apartment complex and stopped in front of the door 3A. Her palms had begun to sweat.

She knocked swiftly and held her ground. She was never nervous about anything. She wasn't nervous about shooting Afghani snipers, but when it came to Alison, she felt as though she was about to lose it completely.

She heard the locks begin to unlatch. Emily's heart caught.

 _Don't be scared, my love. It's been far too long for us to be apart. Didn't you miss me?_ Alison's cocky voice said in her ear _._

The door opened and there she stood with a blanket draped around her shoulders. Her blue eyes were red and swollen from crying, and her beautiful blonde curly hair was now almost a frail straight.

Emily was wringing her hat in her hands, her knuckles turning a bright white from squeezing so hard. Her breath caught in her throat.

Alison's eyes grew wide and she dropped her blanket at the sight of Emily in her camouflage uniform, completely forgetting why she was upset in the first place. It was as if the entire building had turned upside down.

"E-Emily?" Alison stuttered so softly that Emily could barely hear her.

"Alison," Emily choked.

Alison flung herself at the brunette and began to sob deeply into her shoulder. Emily picked her up and cradled her into her body. She kicked the apartment's door closed behind her and looked around for the couch.

She sat down with Alison in her arms, the blonde's head buried deep within her shoulder.

Emily rubbed her back. "I'm here, it's okay."

"What the fuck? Emily," Alison choked. She couldn't form full sentences though as her tears began to fall even harder.

This was not how Emily expected this to go. She pulled away from the blonde carefully and brushed her hair from her face. Electricity prickled as her fingers met Alison's cheek. She had missed her so much.

Emily wanted nothing more than to stay here forever just holding the other girl. No amount of distance kept Emily from realizing how in love with Alison she still was.

"Let me get you something to drink," Emily insisted.

Alison shook her head and held Emily's large hand against the side of her face. "I don't want you to leave me again," she cried.

"No, no. I'm not going anywhere," Emily said. "I promise."

"You were gone. I didn't know where you were. I thought you hated me," Alison said.

"I could never hate you, Ali. I-," Emily stopped herself.

 _Tell me you love me,_ The Other Alison insisted in Emily's head.

"I just couldn't," Emily finished, her chest tight.

Alison had finally begun to stop crying and lay against Emily's chest. Underneath her uniform, her scars prickled in anxiety.

"I didn't know you joined the army. I thought you were at Pepperdine. It's been five years and I can't even," Alison leaned away so she could look into Emily's eyes.

"Ali, I heard about Charlotte. I'm sorry," Emily apologized.

She wasn't sorry. But she was sorry that Alison was hurting.

Alison scoffed slightly and looked down at Emily's burnt fingers. "I know you hated her. But I appreciate the effort."

 _I know you want to kiss me_ , The Other Alison cooed.

Emily stared at the Real Alison's lips. They were still perfectly light, like a heart. She wanted nothing more than to kiss them again and taste what she's been wanting to have for five years.

Ali's fingers played with Emily's and felt along the bottom of her sleeve. Her cool blue eyes met Emily's.

"Take off your jacket," she said.

Emily seemed taken aback. "Excuse me?" she asked.

But she didn't argue as she slipped the jacket off of her back so Alison could follow the burn marks up her arm. The room was silent as Alison's tears met Emily's skin. It felt as though she were being burned again with each droplet.

"What happened to you?" Alison whispered.

"Ali," Emily said.

"No. You didn't. You didn't go over _there_. Without telling me. You wouldn't," Alison snapped as she pulled away.

"Ali please," Emily begged.

Alison stood up and looked over towards Emily's left side where the ink sleeve wrapped around her arm.

"What's that?" she asked.

"It's a tattoo. It's many tattoos," Emily said dumbly.

She was treading dangerous waters. Frankly, she was waiting for Alison to scream at her.

Alison held Emily's arm in hers and traced the outline of the small blue waves, the ships, and all the way up to the mermaid. Emily closed her eyes in pleasure. Alison smiled to herself softly.

"You got a mermaid. It's beautiful," she sniffled.

Emily opened her eyes. "Alison. I owe you an apology."

Alison's eyes wouldn't meet her's. "I remember when I wrote that in my journal. It was about you, but you know that already. You were my Mermaid," she said, ignoring what Emily was trying to say.

"I got blown up," Emily said suddenly.

Alison's eyes grew wide. "You what?"

"It was a roadside bomb. We didn't see it coming. The Humvee exploded. I somehow made it out. But it wasn't all me," Emily said.

Alison had begun to cry again. "And you never even bothered to tell me you left. There was no goodbye. You could've died, and I never would've known."

Emily remained silent, unsure of what to say. She wanted so badly to kiss Alison and tell her how much she loved her, but she refrained.

"I've killed people, Alison. I'm not who I was. Please don't take it personally," Emily said.

Alison turned around with a glare that would've made the old Emily cower in fear. "Yeah, you're not. Because the Emily I knew wouldn't have abandoned me and then lied to me."

"Ali-,"

"No. Shut up Emily. How can I not take this personally? Did you tell any of the girls?" Alison asked.

Emily didn't respond.

"Answer me," Alison demanded.

"I told Hanna. I sent her a letter when I was first deployed," Emily admitted.

Alison scoffed again. "She knew and didn't tell me. I called about you, Emily. I was looking for you. And all I got were bullshit stories about where you _would've_ been. But you were getting shot at in the middle of a desert. Was Pepperdine a lie too?"

"I told Hanna not to tell you. I told Hanna not to tell anyone. Not even my mother knew. And no. I went to Pepperdine. For a year and a half. I dropped out to join. My mom got sick. She didn't have the money and I didn't have what it took to stay in college. So I left," Emily said as she stood up to look down on Alison who was now a complete head shorter than her.

"You left me," Alison said. Her lower lip had begun to tremble. "You left me here all alone. You were supposed to be the loyal one."

Emily grabbed both of Alison's hands in hers. "I fucked up, I know. I shouldn't have left. But I did, Alison. We can't go back and change that. I'm here now."

"But you were gone for five years! I _loved_ you and you were _gone_!" Alison yelled.

Emily had grown silent. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Alison loved her. She truly did. It wasn't fake. It wasn't all in her head.

"You should've told me that. Before I left!" Emily demanded.

"It didn't matter. You wouldn't have stayed. You hate it here and you hated Charlotte. Who was I to force you to stay? It would've been a complete waste of tears. Yet here I am crying them five years later," Alison said stiffly.

"I loved you, Alison," Emily said. It was almost impossible to get the words out.

"Past tense?" Alison asked as she stepped closer.

Emily looked away.

 _Please Mermaid. We want this. Both of us. Let us be happy_ , The Other Alison said.

"No. I never stopped. I never stopped loving you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to leave a giant endnote but I'm with family, so there's not much I can really indulge in. I'll try. 
> 
> This chapter is a biggie. I know many of you are thinking "Alison and Emily are rushing into this. It's ridiculous. What type of slow burn is this?" 
> 
> And yes, you're right. It's quick. It's one of my biggest regrets I have when writing this story to be honest. But I do have to openly say that this is somewhat how I wanted the show to actually end. I believe Alison and Emily needed this. I wasn't going to entertain such a slow burn because when I first wrote this, they were queerbaiting Emison and I was heated about it.  
> So yes everything is quick. But it's a mystery fiction, so it throws you through a million loops. 
> 
> Just enjoy the angst and the conversations we all wished they had but they never had. I'm still salty about it, but hahaha. 
> 
> Lots of love!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed the holidays! 
> 
> I know I did, except I didn't really get to see my girlfriend much because she celebrates Christmas and I don't so her family wanted her to be with them. Understandable though. 
> 
> Have a great time reading!

Alison stopped pacing and stared at Emily. "You what?" she asked.

Emily gritted her teeth. Why was this so goddamn hard?

"I never stopped loving you, Ali. When I left Rosewood, I didn't _want_ to. I _had_ to. And you're right. I wouldn't have stayed. But if you had wanted to come with me, I would've taken you with me. The last thing I ever wanted to do was leave you here," Emily said.

Alison felt her heart shatter into a million pieces. How could Emily stand here five years later and tell her this? After all the separation? After Emily joined the army and deployed to a wasteland?

"You should've told me that," Alison said. "You shouldn't be telling me this now."

"I had no choice, Ali. I knew your decision. And you had to stay here for an extra year of high school anyways because of your disappearance. I had to move on with my life too. I couldn't wait around for you," Emily said.

Alison didn't want to hear any more. She turned away from Emily and went to the kitchen.

She began to pour herself a glass of wine. She knew she definitely needed it.

Emily's boots clunked against the ground as she made her way into the kitchen and leaned against the doorframe.

"I'd offer you one, but I'm assuming you don't drink much wine anymore," Alison said.

Emily shrugged. "Really only single malt whiskey."

Emily wasn't sure what to do. They had confessed that they loved each other. Or at least, Alison used to love Emily.

"Do you still feel the same way?" Emily asked.

Alison's eyebrows stitched together in confusion. "About?"

 _Typical me. Playing dumb to get what I want. You know she knows what you're talking about. Don't be stupid, Em,_ the Other Alison said.

Emily scoffed. "You know what I'm talking about. Do you still love me?"

Alison shrugged and took another sip of wine. "It doesn't really matter, does it? I'm seeing somebody."

Emily's heart dropped. "What?"

Alison wouldn't meet her eyes. "I'm seeing somebody," she repeated.

Emily shuffled her feet and began to blush. How was that fair? How could Alison get to lead her on only to tell her that she couldn't be with Emily anyways?

"You've got to be joking," Emily muttered.

Alison finished her first glass and spun on Emily, her expression angry. "You _left_. I'm allowed to date."

"I never said you couldn't," Emily said. A hint of jealousy poked through. Alison didn't realize who she was testing.

"But you don't want me to. Five years later, and you still think I'm yours," Alison whispered in a tone that came across somewhat malicious.

Emily turned away and began to walk towards the front door of the apartment. She'd had enough of this. Coming back to Rosewood was a mistake.

"Why are you leaving?" Alison asked.

Her expression seemed genuine enough. Emily guessed Alison just wasn't used to the new Emily not dealing with bullshit any longer.

"Because I'm not playing around with you, Ali. I told you I loved you, and you're still playing with my emotions five years later. You have a boyfriend. I've had to deal with a lot more than teenage drama. I've seen people die, Ali. People I cared about. And people I didn't. That's why I liked the desert. There was no girl drama there. There was just war. And war was dirty but pure," Emily spat.

Alison grabbed her arm. "He was right," she whispered.

"Who was right?" Emily asked, confused.

"Elliot. The guy. He's Charlotte's Doctor. Or he used to be. He told me you'd be different. I didn't know just how right he was," Alison said.

"He doesn't know me. You don't either," Emily growled as she ripped her arm away from Alison.

Emily gripped the door handle and began to turn it when Alison sighed.

"You asked me if I still loved you. I never stopped loving you either."

Emily froze. She'd said it. Alison had really said it. She let go of the door knob and turned to face the short blonde.

"What do you want me to do?" Emily asked helplessly. In all actuality, she had no idea what she could do. It was no longer up to her.

Alison moved forward and wrapped her arms around Emily's neck. "Just hold me."

Emily put her hands on Alison's waist and pulled her back towards the couch so the blonde could lean her head against Emily's chest.

"Your heart's beating really fast," Alison said.

Emily shrugged. "It does that."

"Because of me or just in general?" Alison asked.

Emily breathed deeply. "Because of war. War changes you."

Alison leaned away again. "You're still Emily. No matter what you've seen, you're still Emily."

Emily shook her head. "I'm not. You think that, but I'm not. I'm... Fucked up."

Alison brushed Emily's hair from her face and touched Emily's cheek. "You're not fucked up. Don't ever say that."

Emily could feel her body throbbing for Alison. She needed her. Emily repeated the same actions Alison had done on her.

Come on Em. I know what's really going on in that mind, The Other Alison laughed.

Emily leaned in so that her face was only inches away from Alison's. Their noses slightly touched.

"What do you want?" Alison whispered.

Emily could smell the slight hint of wine on her breath. It only enticed her further.

"I don't know," Emily admitted sheepishly.

_Oh Em. Stop lying to me. We all know what you really want. No use in hiding it, right?_

Emily couldn't help it. She leaned in and kissed Alison's pale cheek.

Alison rested her forehead against the brunette's.

"I lied about that," Emily admitted again.

Alison smiled. "I know you did."

Emily almost pulled away but Alison wouldn't let her.

She took Emily's hands and pressed them against her chest. "I'm here. Feel my heartbeat. We're right here together. This is real."

Alison touched Emily harder and ran her hands through her hair. "Em... Please tell me what you want."

Emily couldn't focus on anything other than the fact that Alison was on top of her. She could only picture kissing her lips. It was paralyzing.

"I want you. I don't want you to be with him, I want you to be with me," Emily struggled to say.

"Prove it," Alison whispered.

_You know what to do, Mermaid. It's just us._

Emily leaned in again and pressed her lips against Alison's soft pink ones.

Emily felt as though her entire world had begun to melt. Her body felt light, almost nonexistent.

Alison straddled Emily's hips and began kissing her back lovingly. Emily couldn't get over just how soft her lips were.

Alison's hands slipped down and peeled Emily's jacket off of her back again so that she could run her hands up and down her tattooed skin.

Alison's fingers lightly brushed the bullet in Emily's arm which only caused Emily to tense underneath her.

Alison stopped kissing Emily's lips so that she could breathe. "Did I hurt you?" she whispered.

Emily shook her head and pulled Alison's face back down to her's. She didn't want it to end. She didn't ever want to leave.

"Are you sure you want this?" Emily asked.

Alison laid back so Emily could position her waist between her legs.

She continued to kiss Alison gently, feeling the blonde's feet wrap around her waist.

Alison slightly bit Emily's lip which caused her to feel a growing warmth in between Emily's thighs.

_Sophia died. Sophia's dead. Troy, Allen, Twig, Jackson. They're all dead, Em. You could've saved them. Why didn't you fucking save them?_

Emily's eyes opened to see Alison's closed ones. She leaned away from the blonde who was trying everything she could to take her shirt off.

"Em? What's wrong?" Alison asked worriedly once she'd noticed Emily had pulled away from her lips.

"It's nothing," Emily shot back almost too quickly.

Alison grabbed Emily's face in her hands and forced her to look her into her steely blue gaze. "Something's wrong. Do you really not want me?"

"Ali, of course I want you. I just... I want to make this work. And I don't think sex on the first night is how it should go," Emily lied.

"There was something else, Em. You were so ready to do it. I could feel you," Alison said.

Emily sighed, turned away, and rubbed her eyelids. "I can't close my eyes."

Alison shook her head confusedly. "I'm not sure I'm catching on."

Emily brushed Alison's cheek with her thumb and the palm of her hand. "I close my eyes and I see _them_ dying all over again."

"Who's them?" Alison asked.

Emily was silent. She hadn't spoken their names since it happened. Not out loud. Not to anybody.

"I don't want to talk about it. I just want you," Emily said.

"Em-,"

"No, Ali. I want to be with you. I wasn't here, but I'm here now. I haven't kissed you like that in five years. When we were in my bedroom," Emily broke off.

"That was the best night of my life," Alison finished.

Emily blushed so red she thought Alison could feel her cheeks burning underneath her palms.

"I want to actually try the dating thing this time. That way when we do give ourselves to each other, it'll feel special. It'll feel right," Emily said.

Alison kissed Emily's lips. She allowed her tongue to wander across Emily's bottom lip, looking for access into the brunette's mouth. Emily welcomed it and met her tongue with her own.

Alison's hands traveled down Emily's neck and rested on her chest. She kissed Emily again lightly and leaned away.

"I love you Em. After all this time. I'm sorry I kept it from you all those years and I'm sorry I was never genuine. I'll never stop loving you," Alison said.

Emily smiled to herself painfully. The images of war were still too fresh in her mind.

"I missed you. I wrote you a letter every single day I was there," Emily said.

Alison laughed. "You did? When can I read them?"

Emily shrugged. "Maybe someday. But not now. You need to sleep."

Emily stood up and picked up her camouflaged jacket.

Alison watched her and shivered. "Please don't leave. Can you stay with me?"

Emily was taken aback. She didn't answer for a few seconds as Alison stood up to hold the brunette's scarred hands.

"We'll just sleep, I promise. Just please stay with me. I can't be alone any longer. I don't want to be," Alison said miserably.

She looked as if she was about to cry again. Emily kicked her boots off and took her pants off so that she was wearing her white t-shirt and her black boxers.

Alison led her to the bedroom, peeled back the covers, and laid down on the right side of the bed. She knew Emily preferred the left. She remembered.

Emily couldn't help but kiss Alison. She had waited so long for the moment like this. She had waited too long to date Alison Dilaurentis, it wasn't funny. And it had finally happened. The first night home. She had Alison all to herself.

"Em, no. We're just sleeping, remember?" Alison laughed softly against Emily's lips.

"I love you. I really _really_ do," Emily said.

"I love you too. But this is happening all too fast. And until further notice, the bedroom is a no kissing zone," Alison said.

"Why?" Emily asked agitatedly.

"You wanted to try the dating thing first. It'll keep us from being tempted to do more than just kiss. You remember how much we made out that one night at your house. It almost led to more before I could stop it. Beds tend to do that," Alison joked.

Emily kissed Alison's forehead and pulled her into her body so that she could spoon her. Her face buried deep in Alison's blonde curls.

"It's nice not being alone for a change," Alison whispered.

"Yeah," Emily agreed.

"You've been alone a lot, haven't you?" Alison asked.

Emily rubbed Alison's back softly. "I have. But I'm not anymore. Goodnight Ali."

Alison turned over and kissed Emily's lips.

"I thought you just said no kissing in the bedroom," Emily scolded jokingly.

Alison laughed into Emily's neck. "I couldn't help it. I finally have you here with me."

Emily kissed Alison's forehead before she laid her head on Emily's chest.

"It's not fair, you know? I lost Charlotte but I got you back. I want you _both_ ," Alison whispered.

Emily rubbed the blonde's back. "This is my first time being back in a real bed. The war was terrifying. They died. They died but I didn't. That's what's not fair. They shouldn't have. Why did I live?"

But Alison didn't respond. She had already fallen fast asleep. Her body curled up to Emily's, never wanting to ever let go.

* * *

_"Fields."_

_Emily looked around. It was dark. She couldn't see much. A couple of things came in and out of focus._

_"Fields, wake up."_

_Emily sat up straighter and opened her eyes. She was back inside the Humvee. Sophia sat next to her._

_"You fell asleep. We seriously thought you died," she joked._

_"Nah, she just wishes," Twig said._

_Emily felt sick. "Guys? What are you doing here? Where are we?"_

_"Fields, what the hell's wrong with you? We're in the convoy. Supply run. Where else would we be?" Twig asked worriedly._

_"This isn't real. This can't be true," Emily choked._

_Sophia put a hand on her chest. "You're freaking out."_

_"You're supposed to be dead. I watched you die. I know you did," Emily said._

_"Hey. You're wrong about that one, Em. We never really left."_

_But it wasn't Sophia who answered. It was Alison. She was bleeding in the seat next to Emily. "You didn't just let them die. You're home now. Which means you're going to let me die too."_

_Emily tried to look away. She tried. "No. No, Ali. I love you."_

_"They're coming," Alison said suddenly._

_"Who Ali? Who's coming?" Emily asked as she leaned forward. The Humvee bounced along._

_Alison smiled at her sweetly. "I wish I knew."_

_Then it began to grow hot._

_"No, Alison. Ali, no!" Emily screamed as the entire convoy went up in flames._

* * *

Emily shot straight up in bed, her breathing labored. Sweat dripped down her forehead and onto her lips so that she could taste the salt.

She looked over at Alison who was stirring in her sleep. She began to open her cool blue eyes as she felt Emily slip out of the bed next to her.

"Em?" Alison asked cautiously.

Emily stopped in the doorframe. She hadn't remembered she was only still in her boxers. The army suggested they wear them to prevent chafing and for extra comfort. Emily loved them.

She turned to the beautiful blonde girl who was laying in bed next to her. Her soulmate. The person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. She could remember the smell of her hair from where she stood. It was so addicting to her.

"I'm just going to use the bathroom. I'll be back," Emily smiled tentatively.

Alison's expression still seemed worried. She got out of bed and walked over to the tall brunette. "I felt it. I felt you wake up. You had a nightmare."

"I always have them. It's nothing new," Emily admitted.

Alison brushed Emily's hair from her face. "You can stay here. That way whenever you wake up, I'm the first one you see."

"Ali, we barely know each other. We haven't spoken in five years and now we're sleeping in the same bed and discussing living together," Emily said.

Alison sighed and pulled Emily back towards the bed with her. "Emily, we know each other. Very well. You and I were brought back together. Please, don't forget that."

Emily pulled Alison's lips to her own and kissed her lightly. "You always bring out the good in me. And there's not much good left."

"Emily, don't think that way," Alison said.

"What am I supposed to think? I'm a _killer_ ," Emily said.

"You had to do it, Emily," Alison said.

Emily began to feel uncomfortable. She couldn't take the lies anymore, but she couldn't tell Alison the truth. Not yet. Things had finally started to piece together again. If Alison knew Emily enjoyed killing for justice, she would never look at her the same way.

She would probably expel her from her life again.

"Yeah, you're right," Emily lied again.

Alison climbed into Emily's lap and kissed the nape of her neck. "Just love me. Just love me and treat me like I'm the most important thing in your world."

Emily felt as though she were about to cry. "I have nothing much left in my life anyways. Nothing besides you."

"Am I not enough?" Alison asked as her lips traveled down towards Emily's jaw.

"Ali... You're more than enough," Emily said.

"So you'll stay?" Alison asked hopefully.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Yes, fine. I'll just have to tell Hanna's mom that I won't be staying at The Radley."

Alison smiled. "At least here, you can call it home. And once the investigation finishes, we'll leave. I promise."

"Alison... What if you're in danger? Somebody murdered Charlotte. Shouldn't we be worried?" Emily asked.

Alison's smile faltered as she played with Emily's fingers in her own. "Whoever it was didn't leave any clues. The police don't know anything. They think it was one of you."

"One of us? None of us were even in the state," Emily said, shocked.

Alison shrugged heavily. Her eyes wouldn't meet Emily's. "I can't think about that right now. All I know is somebody killed my sister. I may or may not be in danger. But I have you."

Emily shifted so she could look into the blonde's beautiful blue eyes. "What about me?" she asked.

Alison touched Emily's lips with her fingers. "I have you to protect me. You came back from a war zone and now you're here. You'll keep me safe."

Emily shivered. But what if I can't?

 _What if I can't keep you safe Ali?_ She thought to herself.

 _Oh, sweet Emily. It's adorable how much faith I still have in you even after not speaking to you for five years. What do you think I'm going to do when I meet the real you? The you who likes the feeling of human blood on her hands? The you who likes to hunt?_ The Other Alison asked.

Emily tried to shake her from her mind. She refused to be taken over.

 _Stop trying to push me away, Em. We all know where that will lead us. It won't be pretty. You like the hunt. You crave it. And now you're going to hunt who did this to Charlotte. Because they're going to come for me. And the girls. Do what you couldn't do in the sandbox, Em. Save a couple lives this time,_ The Other Alison said again sweetly.

Emily carried Alison back over to her side of the bed and tucked her in. She couldn't help but kiss her soft pink lips, tasting every inch of what she had lost those many years ago.

"Em... You're home now right? I have all of you?" Alison asked once Emily had leaned away.

Emily slipped her hand across Alison's waist underneath the covers which caused the blonde to shiver. She missed being touched this way. She missed Emily's long tan fingers and soft palms caressing her skin in an attempt to arouse her.

Emily looked into Alison's eyes and did her best to breathe evenly so the younger girl wouldn't suspect anything.

"You do. You have all of me," Emily whispered.

Alison crawled up into Emily's neck and began to fall asleep. It was the first peaceful night Emily had in a while.

But she couldn't help but feel as if everything she had told the love of her life was a lie. Alison didn't have all of Emily, not really.

Emily had left half of herself behind in the war. She lost who she truly was the minute the convoy blew up.

And there was no way that part of her was ever coming back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay let's get skipping. (And yes, I know I updated this later in the day than I'm used to. But guess what? At least it got done on update day.) 
> 
> This fluff between Emily and Alison is quick. There is definitely no resistance when it comes to them telling each other how much they love on another. I feel like I'm on one of those infomercials trying to sell a product that gives you no resistance or something. 
> 
> I wish I had elaborated more on the fluff in this story. It truly would have made me and my readers much happier when reading this. 
> 
> Emily's PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) takes a turn throughout her time with Alison. She is very clearly struggling with the fact that her friends were brutally murdered in front of her. There's no way to make that seem less than it is. 
> 
> Next update is on Thursday.  
>  See you then!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to head down south to visit family again. But I'm sure you'll all enjoy this little bit of girl bonding fluff. 
> 
> Have fun!

Alison woke up to the smell of something cooking. She couldn't place what it was. It was almost _sweet_.

She got out of bed and stretched, her bones aching from the way she had fallen asleep all curled up in Emily's neck. She was surprised the brunette didn't wake her when she woke.

Alison pulled a blanket around her shoulders and traveled out to the kitchen where Emily was standing at the stove in her white t-shirt and black boxers. The one thing that stood out was the deep blue mermaid and ocean etched into her skin.

Alison found it intriguing. Why would she get that when she was in the desert fighting a war? Emily had mentioned that she wrote Alison letters every single day. It only made Alison want to read them more.

It was her second day having Emily back and it felt natural. It felt as though she had never left.

But something was off about Emily. She was different. Alison could tell. She knew more than she was letting on. Maybe one day she'd finally fess up to what really happened in the desert. But until then, she had nothing. She just simply had to wait.

She walked behind Emily and attempted to slip her arms around Emily's waist.

Emily spun around with a knife in her hand and faced Alison, a look of extreme anger crossing her face.

"Em!" Alison jumped.

Emily dropped her shoulders, her breathing labored. She tried her best to ignore what happened, but her body was shaking hard.

"Em, put the knife down," Alison said calmly as she snuck forward and grabbed the knife's handle from Emily's sweaty palm.

"I'm s-sorry. I thought," Emily began but she stopped.

"Thought what?" Alison asked cautiously.

The food on the stove began to sizzle which caused Emily's attention to flounder. She turned back to the food, occasionally flipping pancakes with the spatula on the kitchen counter.

Alison put the knife back in the knife drawer and pulled Emily away from the pancakes after she had transferred them all over to a plate.

"Alison, please," Emily said.

Alison wouldn't listen to it any longer. "You just tried to stab me. What is wrong? Tell me Emily, or so help me God."

Emily looked as if somebody has slapped her. She rubbed her tattooed arm precariously and tried her best to distance herself from Alison.

"I'm not used to this," Emily said.

"Used to what?" Alison asked.

" _This_ , Alison. Waking up in a real bed, making fresh pancakes in the morning, walking around freely, being in air conditioned buildings, showing affection to the girl I love," Emily said.

At the last word, Alison stiffened. She wanted nothing more than for Emily to take her to the bedroom and do whatever she wanted with her. She wanted her to prove just how much she really loved her. It was so hard not being able to touch her.

Emily was still so distant. It was almost impossible to feel as if the old Emily was around anymore.

"We'll take things slow, okay? I refuse to lose you again," Alison said.

Emily wouldn't meet her eyes. She felt guilty. She felt guilty for leaving the blonde. She felt guilty for hurting her. She even felt guilty for the deaths of her friends in the convoy. She simply felt guilty.

Alison cupped Emily's face in her hands so she would have to look at her.

"Em... If I lose you again, I won't be able to do it."

"Ali-,"

"I love you. I know it's been five years. It's been a while since we were together. But I never stopped loving you. You know that. And I don't ever want to lose you," Alison whispered.

"But what if you already did Alison?" Emily spat.

Alison's eyebrows knit together in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Emily shook her head. She had almost let it all slip.

 _You like to kill. Just admit it to me. It's okay. I won't judge,_ The Other Alison said teasingly.

"Nothing. I'm sorry. I'm just tired. I didn't sleep well last night," Emily lied with a fake smile.

She was getting sick of faking her happiness. It was the one thing she found corny. People tended to pretend they were happy when they actually weren't. Why was being sad such a sin?

Alison kissed her on the nose and grabbed a pancake from the stack on the blue plate by the stove.

"For somebody who's been in the desert, you still remember how to cook," she joked.

Emily rolled her eyes. "That's about the only thing I can make. That, and Mac N Cheese. Anything other than that, I burn. You remember."

Alison laughed. "I do! Remember the time you tried to make the Christmas chicken and it caught fire and Hanna tried to put it out by spraying it with the garden hose?"

"How could I forget? It was one of the best Hanna moments ever. I can still hear Spencer's condescending screams and her amazing abilities to use a fire extinguisher," Emily said.

Alison laughed and wrapped her arm's around Emily's neck. "Just know, if anything catches fire in our house, you're paying for it."

"Our house?" Emily asked. She couldn't lie. She really liked the sound of that. She wanted nothing more than to live with Alison. And with Charlotte out of the way, it only made it more appealing.

But The Other Alison was right. Emily needed to hunt. Somebody had killed Charlotte which meant they hurt Alison.

Emily didn't like Charlotte at all. In fact, she was almost too glad that -A was dead.

She was to the point where she was actually jealous that somebody had beat her to killing the crazy bitch. But she had to find who killed her and make them pay.

"Yes. Our house. You and me. We live here now. I know you've been here for less than a full day, but you do live here now. This is your home. With me," Alison whispered.

Emily's lips were against Alison's now. She bit the blonde's lips which only caused Alison to moan in her ear. Oh, had Emily missed that sound. It was the most arousing sound ever. It was the sound of Alison's pleasure and nothing turned Emily on more.

Emily could feel the heat beginning to grow in between her own thighs. She hadn't felt this way since she was first with Alison. No matter how many girls she fooled around with in Afghanistan or in California, none of them compared to the blonde standing in front of her right now.

"No, Em, we can't," Alison murmured.

"Why can't we Ali? I want you. Please," Emily begged. She felt weird. She hadn't begged a girl for love since Alison and her broke up.

Alison eyed Emily's heavily muscular body. She was so tempted to tear her clothes off and see what she fully looked like underneath. But she couldn't. They had been together for two days.

It wasn't enough.

"I know you want me. Trust me, I want you too," Alison sighed.

"Then why not just have me? We live together, we have a bed. Unless of course you would like to do it here on the counter. I wouldn't mind that either," Emily joked.

"Emily. You just tried to stab me," Alison said seriously.

Emily blushed. "I didn't mean to. It was a reflex."

"Why? How many people did you kill in Afghanistan?" Alison asked.

Emily remained silent. "Only three or four. That's about it," she lied again.

Alison seemed to believe her and ran her hands down Emily's muscular chest to her abs, and down even further to the band on her boxers.

"Don't tease me, Ali," Emily said softly. She could barely breathe with where Alison's hands were. _They were so close._ It was driving Emily absolutely crazy.

The phone began to ring on Alison's counter. She pulled her hands away from Emily's waistline and grinned as though she had won something big.

"Saved by the ring," Alison teased her.

But Emily couldn't help but feel a large weight of disappointment begin to choke her. She needed this girl. Almost as much as she needed to find Charlotte's killer.

Alison put the phone back in its cradle after she finished talking to whoever was on the line. Her face was a light pale. She looked as though she were about to throw up.

"Ali? What's wrong?" Emily asked uneasily.

Alison had begun to cry and wiped the tears off of her cheeks. "That was Rosewood PD. It's official. The investigation has begun. And we're all suspects. Including you."

* * *

Charlotte's funeral was going to prove to be awkward. While there was Alison to worry about, Emily also had to worry about Charlotte's killer (Though she kind of believed he or she was long gone by now.) At least that was killer 101.

To follow with it, nobody was going to come. And the fact that Charlotte's favorite victims were to be the only ones that were attending, made Emily mad. Why should they have to go to their tormentor's funeral?

After dropping Alison off at work, Emily drove over to the Radley where she planned on meeting the other girls for a drink to discuss the funeral and the investigation.

Hanna, Spencer, and especially Aria looked sick. Emily sat back comfortably. She was used to pressures way worse than this.

Hanna finished her first martini and signaled the waiter for another.

"Whoa, slow down Hanna. It's only twelve," Spencer said.

Hanna rolled her eyes at the tallest brunette. "I don't care. It's six o'clock somewhere."

Aria had been nursing her wine. She didn't know what to say or when to say it. She just watched her other friends as they remained silent.

"Does anybody else feel weird?" Aria asked.

"What do you mean?" Emily asked.

"Charlotte is dead. A. A is dead guys. And we're going to her funeral? I love Ali but. She can't ask this of us," Aria said.

Spencer scoffed. "She's Ali. She can ask us to do anything and we'd agree."

"Yeah," Hanna piped up. "Like Emily. You didn't check into your hotel room last night."

"Y-yes I did," Emily said nervously.

"No you didn't. Last time I talked to you, you were heading to Ali's place. Oscar said you never checked in to get your key," Hanna said suspiciously.

"What are you insinuating Hanna?" Spencer asked.

Hanna seemed confused. "I don't know what that means."

"It means what are you getting at," Aria spoke.

Hanna rolled her eyes. "I'm suggesting that Emily slept over at Ali's place."

Emily tapped her whiskey glass gently with her pointer finger.

"Em? Did you?" Spencer asked as she cocked an eyebrow while looking at Emily.

Emily shrugged. "Does it really matter?"

"I knew it! You're hooking up with Ali again!" Hanna shrieked.

The other girls shushed her.

Aria stared at Hanna blankly. "Han, just because she slept over doesn't mean they were hooking up. They could've just been catching up, and it got late so Emily stayed the night."

Hanna laughed. "Yeah, right! Emily and Alison sleeping alone under the same roof in separate bedrooms? That could never happen. They just have to jump each other's bones like cats in hotness."

"Hanna, really. It's 'Cats In Heat.' Not hotness. And they're not together. Em would've told us. Right Emily?" Spencer asked.

Emily rolled up her sleeves so her tattoo could show. She just loved showing off the beautiful blue mermaid that resembled Alison.

She didn't answer.

"Emily?" Spencer asked again.

"Look, Alison and I have decided to try things. We didn't have sex last night, Hanna. But we are trying to give this a shot," Emily said.

"Oh, my bad. You guys are together?" Spencer asked, surprised.

"Are you sure that's such a good idea Em?" Aria asked.

Emily finished her whiskey and asked the waiter for another one once he brought Hanna's new martini.

"At this point in time, I'm not sure if anything is a good idea anymore," Emily said.

"Emison," Hanna whispered.

"Shut up," Emily said. She couldn't help but feel the blush on her cheeks grow hotter.

"So what? You're planning on staying in Rosewood?" Spencer asked.

Emily groaned. "Spence, I don't know. Okay? What happened between Ali and I last night was purely accidental. I saw her, she saw me, and it was like an explosion. It was like we hadn't been apart for five years. I hate it here. Ali does too. She stayed here for her sister. But maybe now that Charlotte's gone, she'll want to finally leave."

"And what if she doesn't? Em, Rosewood is the only real home Ali's ever known. She may not want to leave. Charlotte will be buried here, her two houses are here. This is where she's lived her entire life," Aria said.

Emily shook her head and ran a hand through her long luscious brown hair. She could always remember the girls in her unit. They were so jealous of Emily's hair. The majority of them cut theirs' off because they hated it or it got in the way too much.

Emily didn't know what to do. Everywhere she turned, she was hitting a dead end. On top of it all, she was now being investigated for murder. AND She also had no leads on who killed Charlotte.

"Ali and I are supposed to be together. And we'll work through this. Somehow we will. We always do. Until then, we have bigger things to worry about. You guys don't have to obsess over whether or not I'm fucking Ali," Emily said.

"Nobody said anything about you fucking Ali," Spencer said in a tone that almost came off disgusted.

Hanna burped. "Actually, I did."

Spencer shot her a stiff look. "Yeah, well, you're drunk and you smell like a distillery."

Hanna shrugged. "I think it's good. Ali and Emily have been alone for years. The fact that they're slipping each other fingers is great."

"Hanna," Spencer scolded.

Emily threw back her whiskey in an attempt to blind out the conversation. It was getting to be too much.

"We're not having sex," Emily said again. This time, more sternly.

Hanna rolled her eyes. "Well, you should be. Reunion sex is the best. Caleb and I-,"

"Aaand we're done with that conversation," Aria interrupted.

Spencer swallowed hard. "Look, Em. If you're happy with Ali, then good for you. You both deserve to be with somebody who is going to love you. She's basically been a soccer mom for five years and you've been off shooting guns in a desert. The fact that you two even came together again is incredible."

Aria nodded. "Ali and I have kept in touch a lot. Her life hasn't been much of anything besides caring for Charlotte. I thought she was finally getting somewhere when she met that Elliot guy though."

Emily stiffened. She felt as though somebody were boiling her blood. "She mentioned him. Who is he again?"

Hanna's eyes glazed over. "Reeeeally Emily? He's the guy who's been giving your girl sausage!"

"You've had enough to drink," Spencer said as she pulled Hanna's martini glass from her freshly painted hands.

Aria ignored what Hanna said and turned back to Emily who looked as though she were about to throw up. "He's Charlotte's doctor. He was at the sanitarium. He visited Ali at work one day when he believed Charlotte was a suicide threat."

"A suicide threat? What did he want to do?" Emily asked, curiously. She was finally getting somewhere.

"Ali said something about him wanting to move her to Brookhaven. It's one of the higher correctional centers upstate," Aria said as she traced the rim of her wine glass.

"And why didn't Ali move her?" Spencer asked suspiciously.

Emily could see Spencer was catching on too.

Aria shrugged slowly. "She said she didn't want Charlotte to move away from her. I don't know. It was like she didn't want to believe that her sister was a threat to herself."

Next to Emily, Hanna was making gurgling sounds and staring at the heavily tiled ceiling. The noises were becoming unnerving.

"And was Charlotte shortly suicidal, or was it long term?" Emily asked.

Aria's eyes grew wide. "Yeah, I remember! She told me Elliot didn't tell her until it got so bad that he believed she was a threat. She had been considering suicide for a while. Ali was pretty pissed when he told her. She said it was super unprofessional how he told her too. He went to the school when she was grading papers."

"You're kidding," Emily scoffed.

"This Rollins guy sounds like a clown," Spencer said, miffed.

"He obviously went there to give her his sausage! Not his red nose, Spence," Hanna droned on again.

Spencer slapped Hanna's forehead.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?!" Hanna demanded as she rubbed the bright red sore spot now forming in between her eyes.

"You are being highly annoying. And I suggest you shut the fuck up," Spencer said.

"Guys, seriously. Can we get back on track? We're discussing who killed -A," Aria said.

"I think you mean _Charlotte Dilaurentis,_ Ms. Montgomery," a cool drawling voice called.

Emily could remember it anywhere. She had heard it too many times to count. It was almost too recognizable.

Lieutenant Tanner walked up to the girls and smiled coldly. Her once brown curly hair had finally begun to turn grey. She always reminded Emily of a frog.

"Wherever you girls go, you always end up in the middle of a murder," Tanner said.

Emily cocked her head to the side. She wasn't afraid of Tanner anymore. She had been pushed around by much scarier people.

"Maybe it's just our luck," Emily retorted.

Tanner looked at her and grinned. "I saw you joined the army. Quite impressive. I never thought you'd ever join. You didn't seem like the type."

"Neither did we. But Emily was trying to run away from the fact that she's in love with Ali," Hanna said in between burps.

Emily turned bright red.

 _Oh Hanna. She's such a card, isn't she? Sadly, she's not the one who gets played,_ The Other Alison whispered in Emily's mind.

Lieutenant Tanner turned back to Emily surprised. "You and Alison Dilaurentis? Well, I certainly didn't see that one coming. I thought she was dating Dr. Rollins."

Emily shook her head immediately. "Not anymore. We're living together."

"Wait, what?" Spencer asked.

Aria attempted to kick her under the table but tagged Hanna's leg instead.

"Ow!" Hanna cried.

Tanner looked at the girls suspiciously and pulled up a chair. "What do you girls know about Charlotte Dilaurentis that could possibly lead to her death?"

"I've already told the police everything I know," Aria said and leaned back.

Spencer nodded, annoyed. "So did I. The minute I got into Rosewood, somebody called my parents' house while they were setting up for my mom's campaign. They asked me to come down to the station."

Tanner pretended to seem sentimental. "I do apologize for that inconvenience. But you see, this is a murder investigation. Something you girls should be quite familiar with. And if you want to help Alison, you need to cooperate."

"Didn't you hear us? We told the police everything we know," Spencer repeated.

Even Hanna nodded in agreement.

Emily was the only one who hadn't been called down to the station for a statement. But there wasn't much for her to say. She wasn't even in country.

"Well, then you can tell me who would want her dead?" Tanner asked.

She looked around at all of the girls who couldn't help but stare at their feet.

Emily cleared her throat. "The whole town wanted her dead. She tortured us."

"Which means you all have perfect motive to kill Charlotte Dilaurentis," Tanner said.

"Now you're just jumping to conclusions. If we wanted to kill Charlotte, somebody would've done it. Why now? It's been five years. We've all moved away and started new lives. Emily wasn't even in the country," Aria objected.

Tanner was silent for a couple of seconds before a confusing grin spread across her lips. "Well, I guess there's more to the story than we know. Luckily, it will be uncovered. And if you girls have anything to do with it, you will wish you had never returned to Rosewood."

She stood up, returned the chair to the table from which it came, and walked away without another word.

Hanna shivered. "She still creeps me out."

"She still creeps us all out, Han," Aria agreed.

Hanna covered her face with her hands. "I just want this -A, Charlotte, CeCe, Charles, whatever this bitch wants to be called, drama OVER. It's ruining our lives! For all we know, it was just another crazy mental patient who killed Charlotte for an extra cup of strawberry jello."

Spencer gave her a pointed, almost defensive, look.

"Sorry Spence. I didn't mean crazyy," Hanna slurred.

Spencer was still sensitive on the subject of mental hospitals. Ever since she had been locked in Radley for believing -A's insane trick concerning Toby's make-believe death, she couldn't help but feel as if she was being insulted as well.

Aria shook her head. "We're never gonna get out of here."

Emily watched her friends' exasperating expressions (and Hanna's drunk one.) She wanted to take Alison and leave. She almost felt naked without being by the younger blonde's side.

Spencer scoffed lightly. "Leave it to Rosewood to let somebody we know get murdered. Once you finally escape it, it always finds its ways to suck you right back in."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to make it known that Emily is NOT intersexed. This is NOT a g!p fiction. I can see where a lot of people would have gotten confused when I first released this, but I assure you that's not the case. 
> 
> I know many of you are wondering why the girls are getting trapped for a murder none of them were around for. Tanner and the RPD are suspicious that the girls didn't get into town the days they said they did or that they hired somebody else to help them with Charlotte's murder. 
> 
> Hanna's lines in this fiction are supposed to be as comical as possible without being too unreasonable. We all know Hanna has her smart moments, but overall, she says funny things that really just confuse everybody involved in the conversation. 
> 
> This fiction won't be EXACTLY like the show. It's how I would've pictured it ending, as I didn't really like the twincer thing and I wrote this way before season 7 even aired. 
> 
> Until next time. 
> 
> Saturday.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, I want to apologize for such a late update. 
> 
> I've had a rough couple of weeks so my updates have been extremely slow. They're usually every other day.
> 
> Hopefully I will return to that schedule. 
> 
> Onwards.

Emily drove back to Alison's apartment from The Radley. She needed time to think and she couldn't while she was with Hanna who had begun to try to sing the alphabet song backwards.

The streets all passed by in a blur. She couldn't believe what it felt like to not be in her uniform. She felt bare. She didn't like it at all. But she certainly couldn't walk around in it. Especially when she wasn't on duty. It would just look weird.

Emily checked the time on the dashboard. 12:30. It was still too early to get Alison yet she was the one person Emily wanted to see. School didn't get out till 2:05.

She knew where she'd go. The morgue hasn't released Charlotte's body yet. If she could sneak in and take a look at the report, maybe she'd get more clues. Besides, it meant breaking into the crime lab. Whoever said Rosewood was boring?

Emily changed lanes in an attempt to turn the car around but felt an ice cold shiver run up her spine as she saw who was about to walk into the Brew.

She pulled her car over and parked in one of the spots out front of the small busy restaurant. Emily got out and felt her stomach churn.

"Paige?" she asked.

The other girl turned around and eyed Emily. Her face grew confused. "Emily?" she asked.

"What're you doing here?" Emily asked again, dumbfounded.

Paige eyed Emily's tattoo and heavily muscled arms. "I mean... I was visiting my parents. It's almost Thanksgiving, Em."

Em. That hurt Emily. She hadn't seen Paige in four years. Time really flew by. "I don't know whether or not to hug you," Emily said.

Paige smiled. "I could use a hug."

Emily walked forward and hugged the other girl who was actually her height. It felt weird, but almost normal. There were many reasons as to why they broke up in California, but neither one of them cared to think of it right now.

"Why are you here? Seeing your mom?" Paige asked.

Emily laughed. "That and I'm here for Alison."

Paige's face grew stony. "I hear she's teaching at Rosewood."

"She is," Emily said, noticing the shift in Paige's expression.

The tension involving Alison's name almost choked Emily. Paige absolutely hated her. Emily could tell she still hadn't thrown out her grudges.

"Are you here just to see her or?" Paige asked.

Emily scratched the back of her neck. She hated dealing with stuff like this. It wasn't even a love triangle anymore. It was Alison. Only Alison.

"I'm here because Charlotte was murdered. I'm being investigated, and Ali needed moral support. The other girls are here too," Emily said nonchalantly.

Paige's eyes grew wide. "You're here taking care of Alison while you're being investigated for her sister's murder? Are you crazy?"

"Excuse me?" Emily asked hotly.

"For all she knows, you killed Charlotte. The bitch deserved to die anyways, but still. She shouldn't want you to comfort her," Paige said.

"Okay, I thought you might've changed in the four years we haven't spoken, but I guess I was wrong," Emily said as she began to turn back towards her car.

"Em- Emily. Wait. Please. I'm sorry, that was rude of me," Paige said.

Emily stopped in her tracks and turned back around. "It was. You're overstepping your boundaries."

"I didn't know I had them. Not with you," Paige whispered.

Emily couldn't bear it. "I'm dating Ali. I mean, I think we are. I don't know. But we're living together, Paige. There are definite boundaries now."

Paige's face seemed to grow a deep shade of magenta. She seemed at a loss for kind words but tried her best to calm down. "How long have you two been together?"

"I just got back from Afghanistan. I don't need to be answering any more questions," Emily said.

"You were deployed? I guess the muscle and tattoos make sense now," Paige said stiffly.

"Look, I know you hate Alison, okay? But just don't anymore. We're together, we're happy. You just be happy for me. We broke up a long time ago," Emily said.

Paige scoffed. "She's a monster, Emily. She has used you time and time again. And you keep letting her. It's like you enjoy being her asswipe."

Emily stepped forward and clenched a fistful of Paige's shirt. "We're not in high school anymore. Do me a favor. Grow. Up."

She could hear Meyers' favorite words shooting out of her mouth. She absolutely loved every second of it.

"Emily, you're hurting me," Paige muttered gently as people had begun to notice Emily's grip on the other brunette.

Emily snapped out of it and let the other girl go. "I'm s-sorry. I didn't mean to."

"Sure you didn't. You don't mean to ever do anything," Paige said.

Emily's expression became distant. She walked back to her car and slid into the driver's seat. She had to get away. She just had to.

* * *

"I got your text this morning. What's wrong? What did you need to talk about?" Elliot asked as he slipped into Alison's free period.

"You've got to stop doing that," Alison said.

"Doing what?" Elliot asked.

"Coming here. I can't mix my personal and professional lives. And you're supposed to be working. You have a doctorate, remember?" Alison asked.

"I know. I'm sorry. I'm just here because it was bothering me. I won't do it again," Elliot said.

Alison sucked in a breath. "Look, that girl, Emily? She's home now. She was in Afghanistan. But she's back."

Elliot narrowed his eyebrows. "And?"

"And I'm in love with her. She's living with me now. Elliot, I'm sorry. I know this isn't what you wanted. I know you never saw this coming. But Charlotte was right. I _am_ in love with her," Alison whispered.

Elliot's eyes grew malicious. "I bet Charlotte didn't tell you the other part to her little riddle, did she?"

Alison cocked an eyebrow and sat waiting.

Elliot stood up and couldn't face Alison. He couldn't bear it.

Alison could feel the anger radiating from his turned back. "Elliot, I'm sorry."

"No, don't. Don't tell me you're sorry. You're not. I was there for you. She was gone for five years. Five years, Alison. Now she's back, and you just welcome her back like nothing's ever happened!" Rollins growled.

"You're angry, I understand," Alison said calmly.

"Do you? Do you understand Alison? I was in love with you. I actually fell for you. And you take back a mutt," Elliot said.

"What was the end of the riddle?" Alison asked, teeth clenched.

Elliot smiled painfully. His anger only poked through even more heavily. "She said that loving Emily would be your ultimate demise."

Alison was silent for a few minutes. "What does that mean?" she asked.

It was hard not to be officially spooked.

Rollins wouldn't meet Alison's eyes. "It means you will regret being with Emily. And that you shouldn't be. She's bad for you, Alison. I'm good for you."

Alison stood up and went to meet him. "You are, Elliot. You're too good for me. I never wanted to hurt you. You're a pure breed. But I harbor a secret love for the mutts."

Rollins stepped closer to Alison and lightly kissed her lips. It made Alison feel weird as his slight stubble grazed her cheek.

She had almost expected the soft, protective, dominant kiss of Emily. But it wasn't. Emily was with the girls.

"If things don't work out with her, you know where to find me," Rollins said.

"Elliot," Alison said.

"Please. Trust me when I say that Emily is not who she was when she left. Soldiers come back with a lot more than just a little sand in their boots. They bring back the war," Rollins warned.

They both turned as they heard a knock on the door's frame. Emily stood there in black jeans, a white t-shirt, and Doc Martins. "I can come back later," she said.

"No, Em. Come here. I want you to meet Elliot," Alison said.

Both Rollins and Emily began to feel a bit weird as Emily entered the classroom and stood about four feet away from the taller man. He was muscular, but not as muscular as Emily.

"So you're the doctor," Emily said as she shook his hand.

"And you're the soldier," Rollins responded disdainfully.

They stood in awkward silence for a couple of seconds before Rollins bowed his head. "I'll see you some other time, Ms. Dilaurentis."

He left the room without another word. Emily turned back to the shorter blonde who had begun to look extremely flustered.

"You're okay," Emily whispered as she pulled Alison in for a hug.

"I am now," Alison said.

Emily let her go and looked around the classroom which used to be her old English room. Alison was an English teacher now. Go figure. She loved literature and books.

"This is Ezra's old room," Emily said.

"You remember," Alison laughed.

"How could I forget? And it was only five years ago. Five years isn't a long time," Emily said.

"I don't know. For me it was. I guess Rosewood makes time seem unavoidable," Alison said.

Emily approached the blonde and kissed her lips gently. "Let's freeze time for a second, okay?" she asked.

Alison nodded and smiled against Emily's lips as she continued to kiss her deeper, her hands traveling down to the blonde's waist.

Alison touched Emily's burned, tattooed forearm which caused her to jump a little.

Alison felt along the burn marks as the brunette left a trail of kisses from Alison's lips, to her jaw, and down to her neck. She knew Emily was sensitive when it came to them. She truly had brought the war back with her.

But it was a war Alison was willing to fight too.

* * *

Emily felt as though her life was beginning to fall into a pattern.

She'd wake up, make Alison breakfast, kiss her goodbye, go to work at the town's Army recruiting station, come home, make dinner, spend some time with Alison whether it be watching movies or talking, and then go to sleep.

After a while though, Emily began to find it all very boring. At least in Afghanistan, something different happened every day. She was settling in Rosewood, and that was something she didn't want to do.

After the investigation had begun, none of the girls were allowed to leave. The Army wanted to ship Emily out to Fort Hood in Texas, but once they found out she was a suspect in a murder investigation, they allowed her to stay in the city as long as she did Army Recruiting.

It wasn't a terrible job, but it wasn't what Emily had in mind when she joined. The majority of the time, she filled out paperwork and sat around in her uniform.

The kids who came in and looked into the Army weren't even sure they wanted to join to begin with. This made it extremely hard for Emily to keep clients when they said they'd come back the next day, and never did. It was absolutely frustrating to her.

She had been in Rosewood for four months. _Four_. Nothing big had happened at all in the investigation. There were a couple suspects, but no leads. The PTSD wasn't all better, but it had improved a lot since she had gotten back from the desert. And with Alison by her side, it was so easy for her to immediately calm down if she had an attack in her sleep or even in large crowds. All Alison had to do was grab her hand, make her look into her eyes, hug her, or kiss her.

But there were downsides to it all as well. Alison insisted that Emily see a therapist even though Emily argued that she didn't need to. Eventually, Alison won out, as she always did. Her reason being was that she loved her, but she couldn't fix all of Emily's problems. And Emily didn't blame her. She had her own as well. Especially with the investigation still going on. And Emily had A LOT of problems.

Emily's therapist, Dr. Elwood, was nice. She worked at the VA hospital about five minutes outside of Rosewood. Emily went to her once a week, twice if she had an emergency.

Dr. Elwood had asked Emily about her intimacy with Alison, and it only made Emily blush.

They hadn't had sex. Four months as an official couple and they still hadn't had sex. It was driving Emily mad. But Alison just kept putting it off.

Emily wondered if she was afraid of having sex with a girl. It would've been Alison's first time with the same sex, and more importantly, it was her first time with Emily. They'd never gone farther than kissing, though they had many heated make out sessions that Emily was almost certain would've led to more.

But Emily never argued when Alison lightly pushed her away once they had begun to slip into the point of no return. She wanted the smaller blonde to feel comfortable instead of rushed. Even though Emily had needs, she didn't want Alison to feel obligated to sleep with her.

One of the younger guys at the recruiting station, Chip, found Emily mindlessly playing with her pocketknife underneath her desk. Nobody had come in, and Emily was bored. Not only was she bored, but she had absolutely no leads again on who killed Charlotte. She was just as stumped as the police.

 _Except you're better than the police, Em. You're better at everything,_ The Other Alison's sultry voice chirped.

Emily had begun to find it annoying that she was in her head all the time. Dr. Elwood said it was the PTSD from the convoy explosion. Sometimes it took the form of something else which only confused Emily more. But after a while, Emily had begun to learn to control it.

Chip looked at Emily and sighed. "Reynolds said we could go home. He says business is too slow to keep us here today."

Emily turned towards the sound of the younger soldier's voice. "Oh goody, can I really?" she asked sarcastically.

He laughed and turned away with his pack slung over his shoulder. He stopped in front of the front door. "What was it like?" he asked.

Emily froze. "What?"

"Y'know. The sand box."

She pondered long and hard and shrugged. "It's war. There's no real way to explain it. Why?"

Chip unwrinkled his hat. "I get deployed next Tuesday. I have to go out there. I figured you're the only one here who's been out there so far."

Emily immediately felt a pang of jealousy. She wanted nothing more than to be sent out again. She missed the hunt.

"Well, you'll do fine. Just. Keep your head down. Don't go looking for bloodshed," Emily finally said.

He smiled softly. "Thanks, Fields."

* * *

"Babe, I'm home!" Emily heard Alison call through the empty apartment.

It was partnered with the sound of Alison dropping her keys into the bowl by the door where they kept small things they were afraid of losing.

Emily was laying on the couch watching the football game. She was still in her camouflage pants, tan belt, and tan tight fit t-shirt. Her jacket and hat hung off the back of the couch.

"Hey," Emily smiled as Alison slipped out of her heels and went to lay with the taller brunette. She seemed exhausted.

Emily wrapped her arms around the other girl and held her close to her chest.

Alison turned her head so that she could kiss Emily's lips. She noticed Emily linger and smiled. "Miss me?"

Emily chuckled. "You have no idea. I miss you all the time though."

Alison laughed and sat up so that she was leaning against Emily's rock hard abdomen. "I miss you all the time too. They called today from the police station."

"Again?" Emily asked, annoyed.

Alison rolled her eyes. "Yeah. They wanted more clues. But I don't have anything else to tell them."

"I can't wait till we can get out of here," Emily said to herself.

She hadn't meant it for Alison to hear, yet the blonde turned towards her and smiled softly. "I can't either. You and me in sweet Paris."

Emily blushed as she thought back to the day of them in the empty classroom freshman year. "Y-yeah."

Alison's cheeks began to burn a bright red too and she turned her face away so Emily couldn't see. She felt like such a child. She was still nervous around her Emily. She wondered if that would ever end.

"Emily?" Alison asked.

"Yes Ali?" Emily asked back.

Alison bit her lip. She had felt it for a while. The desire to let Emily make love to her. It was almost demanding. She had refused to jump into it until Emily had the semblance of normalcy. Every single time she looked at the well built brunette, she almost melted into her heels. It was driving her crazy.

"Nothing," Alison changed her mind.

Emily sat up so she was leaning on her elbows. "No, Ali. What's up?" she asked.

Alison had begun to blush so bad, the hair on her neck standing on end. "What's it like?"

Emily exhaled. This was the second time she had answered this question today. "It's a desert, Ali. It's hot and-,"

"No, Em, not Afghanistan. What's it like to... You know?" Alison whispered.

Emily was confused for a second and let the pieces fall into place. "Oh you mean... OH. I can't really explain that, Ali," she admitted sheepishly.

Alison moved so that she was closer to Emily, their noses almost touching. "You don't have to but... Can you show me?" the younger blonde asked.

Emily's heart leapt. It was actually happening. There was nothing special about the evening. It was a regular old evening and they hadn't eaten dinner yet.

"Aren't you hungry?" Was all Emily could ask stupidly.

 _Dumbass_.

Alison knitted her eyebrows together and nodded her head as she began to claw at Emily's jaw. "For you, yes."

Emily's body began to relax as Alison started to kiss her, the sound of the game in the background beginning to fade.

Emily concentrated on Alison's full pink lips, the way her long blonde hair spilled down her shoulders, her soft moans in Emily's ear as Emily began to hungrily kiss her neck.

"We can't do this here," Emily whispered in between breathless kisses.

Alison could only slightly nod as she wrapped her arms around Emily's neck, and her legs around the brunette's waist.

Emily carried her into the bedroom and kicked the door shut behind her hastily. The growing heat in between her thighs only seemed to be growing hotter.

The dominant side of Emily climbed on top of Alison and continued to kiss her throat.

Emily felt Alison's hands on Emily's back, pulling her tucked in t-shirt out of her camouflage pants.

Alison helped pull Emily's shirt and sports bra over her head, taking time to view Emily's well sculpted abs and chest for the first time ever.

Emily hadn't shown Alison these scars from the convoy yet and began to grow self conscious as her blue eyes poured over them.

Alison leaned forward and pressed her lips to the seatbelt scars which felt to Emily as though she were being electrocuted every time she touched her tan skin.

Alison blushed at the sight of Emily's breasts, the nipples already stiff in arousal. They were medium sized, not overly large. It was weird seeing her without a shirt on, but Alison knew she didn't want to see Emily with one on ever again.

Emily followed her lead and helped Alison out of her dress as well. She unhooked the blonde's bra and threw it onto the floor. Alison continued to kiss Emily, her tongue slipping into Emily's mouth.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Emily asked against Alison's soft lips.

"Yes," Alison breathed. "Please."

Emily left a trail of kisses down from Alison's lips to her chest where her beautiful large breasts were.

Alison ran her hands through Emily's hair. It had been a long time since she had sex with anybody. She slipped out of her black lace panties so that she lay underneath Emily completely naked.

Emily couldn't help herself. She pulled her uniform pants and boxers off and tossed them across the room before returning her attention back to Alison's body.

Her beautiful Snow White figure was that of an hourglass, her stomach flat and smooth leading down to her waxed sex. Emily bent her head to Alison's nipple and began to caress it with her tongue, slowly sliding back and forth over it.

Alison began to pant underneath her. "Em... Jesus Christ," she moaned.

"You like that baby?" Emily asked as her teeth lightly grazed Alison's bud which caused a shiver to run down the blonde's spine.

Emily traveled lower to Alison's hips. She kissed them and trailed her tongue along the younger girl's skin which tasted of salt from her nervous sweat.

"Emily," Alison could barely manage as the brunette's touches became scarce.

Emily felt along Alison's folds which caused the blonde to immediately moan out.

"You're so wet," Emily said huskily. Just the thought of it almost sent Emily over the edge.

Emily teasingly began to kiss around Alison's sex which caused the shorter girl to shiver in excitement.

Emily then began to suck Alison's clit, using her tongue to roll over the smooth Pearl.

Alison's breath hitched and she began to pant. "Oh fuck... Em... Emily... Oh my god please..."

"Don't come yet," Emily warned as she moved up and kissed Alison's swollen lips.

She noticed Alison's toes curling in absolute pleasure. It only made Emily begin to feel wet between her thighs too.

She had wanted to do this with Alison Dilaurentis her entire life and now she finally was. It was utterly a dream come true.

Emily went back to stimulating Alison's clit, feeling it grow hotter and more erect in her mouth. Emily couldn't believe just how addicted she was to the taste.

She was so in love with Alison. There was nobody she loved more.

She could see it in Alison's eyes too as Alison enjoyed every second of what was happening between her legs where Emily's head was.

Emily traced the outline of Alison's sex and began to lick her dripping wet slit. Bumps rose in Alison's skin in anticipation.

Emily smiled at the control she had over the smaller blonde. For the first time in the many years she had known her, Emily was the one who had complete control.

Emily made sure Alison was lubricated enough so that she wouldn't hurt her before letting her middle finger slip into Alison's slit, the walls of her tight sex gripping it. Emily loved the feeling of the inside of Alison's warm, wet, sex.

Alison began to moan immediately as Emily started to thrust her finger in and out repeatedly, hitting the blonde's g-spot.

"God, Emily, it feels so good," Alison said.

Emily's libido seemed to grow even stronger as she added two more fingers.

"Fuck, fuck please. Harder, baby. Im about to come," Alison moaned loudly.

Emily did as she was told, only stopping when she felt Alison's clit begin to throb from stimulation and the come drip from Alison's sex into Emily's hand.

Alison was panting heavily, her body trying to calm down from the overwhelming orgasm she had just experienced. The warm feeling of ecstasy washed over her, her mind afloat. She felt as though she were about to pass out. Small lights danced behind her blue eyes.

"Emily," Alison whispered as Emily shut her up with a kiss on her barely open mouth.

Emily bit on Alison's lip teasingly. "I'm not done with you yet."

Alison's eyes grew wide. What more could even be possibly done? She hadn't ever felt that good before. No guy was ever able to make her come before. It was as if she had experienced something entirely different.

Emily positioned herself on top of Alison so that her own sex made contact with the blonde's underneath her.

Alison kissed Emily roughly, enjoying the thought of Emily's face between her thighs that was replaying in her memory.

It all stopped however, the second Emily began to grind doggy style against Alison's clit.

Alison gripped Emily's heavily muscled arms holding her up on either side as Emily grounded on her back and forth as if she were penetrating her.

Emily began to kiss Alison again, occasionally groaning into her mouth. "Oh fuck... You're so beautiful _Alison_."

The sound of her name sent wave after wave of pleasure down Alison's spine. The only time Emily ever called her "Alison," was when she was extremely angry or in this case turned on.

Alison moved her hands off of Emily's muscular arms and onto her back between her shoulder blades. She couldn't help but dig her nails into the brunette's exceptionally tan skin.

Emily kept thrusting until the orgasm building up between her legs became so pleasurable she couldn't stop. As she reached the top of her mind splitting climax, Alison achieved another one as well underneath her.

Emily rolled onto her back panting heavily, the blonde girl next to her mimicking her movements in agreement.

Alison kissed Emily's lips and laughed. "That was so amazing, holy shit."

Emily laughed too. She was in complete disbelief with what had just happened. But it felt so good.

Neither one of them could believe the amount of pleasure they felt. It was Alison's first time achieving an orgasm in bed, her first time with a girl, and her first time with the love of her life.

Emily helped Alison under the covers and spooned her. The electricity between the two still sparking.

"I'm so in love with you, Alison," Emily heard herself say. It was one of the first fully human responses Emily had ever made since she got back.

"You called me Alison," Alison murmured, her cheeks burning red with blush.

Emily blushed back. She couldn't help it.

Alison lay her head on Emily's muscular blue tattooed arm. She ran her fingers up and down it which caused Emily to close her eyes in pleasure.

She stopped when the touched the compass by the mermaid's head, feeling the hard part of skin where the bullet lie.

"What is that?" Alison asked, confused.

Emily tried to pull away but Alison slipped her hand in Emily's tattooed one, not letting her.

"It's a bullet. I got shot," Emily whispered.

Alison sucked in a bit of breath and exhaled evenly. "You kept it."

"I just couldn't get rid of it Alison, I couldn't-,"

"It's okay. I understand, Emily."

Emily wasn't expecting this response but she relaxed and felt Alison melt into her. She didn't even mind the feeling of the blonde's naked body pressed up against her own.

"Can I tell you something?" Emily asked.

"Of course," Alison said lovingly.

Emily took a deep breath. "When I was on that convoy, my two best friends died. Everybody died except for me, my commanding officer, and some other guy. But... When Sophia died..." She trailed off as she realized she finally spoke her name for the first time since the accident.

"Em, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Alison whispered after Emily's silence.

"No... No I want to tell you. It's just my first time saying their names since. But... I held Sophia in my arms as she died. I watched my friend Twig burn. I thought I was going to lose my mind after that, you know?

"I got tattoos to begin with because Sophia told Twig and I that when we got back from the mission, we'd go get tattooed. I had originally planned on one but... I hate to admit it. I got addicted to the pain from getting them," Emily whispered. "It stopped the pain of losing them all over again."

Alison rolled over just slightly so she could see Emily's stony expression and kissed her lips softly and lovingly. "I love you, Emily Fields. You're going to be okay... I'm never going to leave you. Even when you struggle with the nightmares and relive the things you don't want to relive. I'll be right here.

Because every Soldier knows that the war with the heart is never easily won."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yes, as I've stated before, Emily and Alison have done the deed for the first time. 
> 
> In this story, 5x05 didn't really occur. Although Marlene openly admitted that they did make love, in my story they didn't do that this could be their official first time.
> 
> I'm super proud of this update simply because I'm not used to writing smut. I don't usually do it and in fact, most of my fictions don't have smut in them. This, so far, is the only one. *wiggles eyebrows* 
> 
> Next update is hopefully going to be Monday. Maybe tomorrow (Sunday) as repayment due to my crappy timing with updates. 
> 
> I apologize again...   
> Lots of love.   
> See you then.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a wee bit late. 
> 
> Trigger warning for this chapter : talks of suicide and a *failed* suicide attempt. 
> 
> Stay safe.
> 
> Right to it.

Emily leaned against the headstone of her father and listened to the birds chirping around her.

_Wayne Martin Fields_

Emily laughed to herself as she thought of all the times with him. All of the memories, all of the sounds and the sights.

"You've got a point, Dad. Maybe I did fuck up by coming back here," Emily spoke to herself at the silence.

 _Oh, Em. If you hadn't come back here, you wouldn't have seen me again. For all you know, I could've been engaged to Dr. Sexy,_ The Other Alison griped in her head.

Emily ignored it and played with the grass underneath her. Just down the path, a couple graves away from her father's, a fairly new headstone with roses by it stood.

_Charlotte Cara Dilaurentis_

Emily couldn't even bring herself to walk anywhere near it. The thought of being anywhere near A or Charlotte or whatever she wanted to be called even though she was dead scared the shit out of her.

"I know what you're thinking. Why come here if you just want to tell me how much you hate Rosewood? Well... I guess I hate it. But Ali is here. I love her, Dad," Emily said again.

It wasn't met with a response but she knew that it never would be. Emily let her head fall into her hands and groaned.

"I don't belong here. I belong out there. I belong in that desert fighting this war. And I keep thinking to myself, what happens when the investigation is over? Ali's going to want me to stay here but... I can't help but think I need to leave again."

"Emily," a man's voice said.

Emily jumped thinking it might've been her father but realized it was just Dr. Rollins.

He smiled uneasily and approached slowly so he wouldn't disrupt her discussion with herself.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you," Elliot said.

Emily stood up quickly and brushed herself off. "No, it's fine. I was just... It doesn't matter. Why are you here?"

Elliot seemed taken aback and shifted his weight uncomfortably. "I was visiting Charlotte. I know she was just my patient but... I felt some respects needed to be paid. I've known her for over five years."

"Oh," Emily said. She felt as though she had come off incredibly rude.

"It's okay, you know," Rollins said again, disrupting her thoughts.

"What is?" Emily asked.

"Talking to the headstone like that," Rollins said, pointing out what Emily had been previously doing.

Emily blushed. "Yeah well... I haven't seen him since I was last here five years ago. I've got a lot to say."

Rollins smiled softly. "May I ask? Why did you leave Rosewood? Other than the fact that you went to college? You never came back."

Emily's eyes wouldn't meet his. "This place just left a lot of bad memories. I made a pact with myself. I wasn't going to return to Rosewood."

"Yet, here you are," Elliot said.

Emily scoffed. "Yeah well... Coming back here was never a part of the plan."

"Not even for Alison?" Rollins asked.

Emily stiffened. "That's complicated."

"She missed you. She didn't want you to ever leave her. She was mad when you did, but she was also mad at herself for staying and letting you. But Emily. I know you're not all there," Rollins warned.

Emily backed away from him as she saw him begin to grow closer. "You don't know the first thing about me."

"The nightmares. The talking to yourself. The voice in your head. Have you ever considered that maybe you're not safe to be around?" Rollins asked again.

"Shut up," Emily warned.

"You're becoming hostile. Listen to how you're speaking to me. You need _help_ , Emily. I'm a doctor. I can help you. But maybe you have to consider that the best thing for Alison is for you to leave. Before she gets hurt," Rollins continued.

"Ali is safe with me. I have a doctor. I go to the VA hospital. I have it under control," Emily said.

"Are you sure about that?" Rollins asked.

Emily swallowed the awful truth. She really wasn't. Ali thought she was safe with Emily, but in reality, Charlotte's murderer was probably safer to be around.

Emily could feel herself growing angry with the constant questions she didn't need to be asked.

 _How dare he, Em? You don't ever let anybody push you around,_ The Other Alison said in Emily's mind.

"Listen to me, Elliot. If this is some sick attempt to get Ali back, it's not working. I'm not leaving. And I'm going to find who killed Charlotte and I'm going to kill them too. And if you stand in my way, I swear to whatever God you believe in, you will be next," Emily hissed threateningly.

Elliot sat back shocked and held his hands up warningly. "Did you just hear what you said, Emily? Listen to me, please. Hear me out. Get help. Before somebody ends up hurt."

"You're about to be the only one hurt if you don't get the fuck out of my way," Emily growled.

Elliot looked backed up nervously and turned back towards his car which was sitting on the edge of the graveyard by the road.

Emily ran home. She had grown so used to running around in the army to keep herself fit that it was almost a necessity.

What if Rollins was right? What if Emily really was dangerous?

 _Oh, Killer. There's nothing wrong with being exactly that. Right? You're my Killer_ , The Other Alison said gleefully.

Emily realized she had to get away. She had to make sure Alison was safe. The only way to do that was to leave. What other choice did she have?

She couldn't protect Alison if she was the demon living under their roof.

* * *

Alison walked into her apartment at the end of the day. She realized Emily's keys were sitting in the bowl on the counter by the front door.

"Em, I'm home!" She yelled.

She expected Emily to answer the minute she screamed out, like she so usually did, but only silence hung in the air.

Alison figured she might've been asleep on the couch. She kicked off her heels and walked through to the living room where the television was off and the pillows practically untouched.

Alison felt confused. Where the hell was she? She snuck around to the bedroom and saw the bed fully made from the morning and the bathroom light was off.

"Emily?" Alison asked, slight panic in her voice.

She walked swiftly into the room and pulled out the drawers to find that they had been cleared of all of Emily's clothing. Alison checked the closet. Emily's boots and military dufflebag with her dismantled rifle and other army gear was gone too.

"Emily?!" Alison screamed through the house, tears streaming down her face.

Where had she gone? And most importantly, why the hell did she leave?

* * *

Emily checked into her room at The Radley and plopped onto the bed. She had started to feel panicked, yet no tears began to fall.

 _Mermaid, what are you doing? You know I'm not safe without you here,_ The Other Alison begged.

"Shut up!" Emily yelled.

She picked up a lamp that was sitting on the dresser by the hotel's beautiful King sized bed and chucked it across the room so that it shattered against the door.

 _Don't you yell at me. That's not going to fix anything Emily. You better watch yourself,_ The Other Alison threatened.

"Shut the fuck up!" Emily yelled again, enraged.

_Or what, Emily? What are you going to do about it?_

"GET OUT OF MY FUCKING HEAD!" Emily yelled again as she picked the flatscreen TV up and chucked it against the wall, the screen cracking in multiple places.

_Oh hon... You're going to have to try a lot harder than that._

Emily began to unzip her duffle bag ferociously and found the parts of her rifle. She quickly assembled it, her fingers shaking as she loaded the bullets into the magazine.

She moved the barrel so that it was under her chin and clicked the safety out of place.

"Get out... Please... Please leave me alone," Emily begged, eyes closed. She fingered the trigger.

 _It'll all be over soon, Mermaid. All you have to do is just pull the trigger,_ The Other Alison cooed.

Just then, the door kicked open.

Hanna burst into the room, her eyes ablaze.

"EMILY!" She screamed.

Emily sat still shaking, her expression stony as Hanna yanked the barrel out from underneath Emily's chin.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU FUCKING THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" Hanna shouted as she slapped Emily across the face.

Emily held her cheek and lay against the blankets of the bed, her mind dead. She felt as though she could die, every inch of her soaked in emptiness.

Hanna watched her worriedly and pulled her cellphone to her ear. "Yeah, I found her. She's okay, I think. Come as soon as you can. It's not good."

Aria and Spencer ran in, their eyes searching the room frantically.

"Oh thank God. You found her. Ali's been blowing up my phone bawling her eyes out for the past hour," Aria said.

"Yeah, mine too. I just got off the phone with her," Hanna said.

"Why is your rifle out?!" Spencer demanded.

Emily was still laying on the sheets, staring at the walls. She felt as though she could cry, yet she didn't. As hard as she tried, it didn't come out.

"Emily!" Spencer yelled again.

"She won't talk. She tried to shoot herself," Hanna concluded as she noticed Emily's poker face.

"What?!" Spencer and Aria said together.

"I found the gun under her neck. If Ali hadn't gone home and noticed she was gone, I wouldn't have looked for her. The doorman told me she checked in," Hanna said again.

"Emily. You have worried Ali sick. You've worried us all. Why would you try to kill yourself?! We're your best fucking friends! What about us?! What about your mother?! What about _Alison_?!" Spencer shouted.

Emily flinched at the sound of her name. Alison. God, it drove her crazy.

"I just got a text from Ali. She's on her way over here," Aria said.

"No," Emily croaked.

All three girls turned to the fourth lying on the bed incredulously.

"No? No?! Are you insane, Emily?! This is the girl who is in love with you. You left her, didn't even leave a note, and tried to just commit suicide!" Spencer shouted.

"She can't come here! She can't see me like this!" Emily hissed.

"You know what? Too fucking bad, Emily. Boo hoo. Stick a dildo up my ass and call me Goober," Hanna started.

"Um... Hanna... I don't think that's really pertinent to the subjec-," Spencer interrupted but Hanna cut her off.

"No. Emily, Ali loves you. Okay? I don't give a shit what type of excuse you make. She has cleared everything for you. You don't get to make whatever call you want. It's not just yours to make," Hanna said.

"She has a fair point there, Em," Aria agreed.

They heard the rushing of heels as Alison stumbled in, her puffy red eyes growing wide at the sight of the broken objects strewn across the floor and the fully loaded military grade rifle that Spencer was now holding.

"Spence... What is that?" She croaked out disbelievingly.

"Ali," Aria began.

"No... No, she wouldn't," Alison had begun to cry again.

Emily sat up on the edge of the bed and saw how broken Alison looked. Her face seemed gaunt and her eyes were sallow. Everything about her screamed misery.

"Ali," Emily barely whispered.

"Do you have any other weapons we need to know about, Emily?" Hanna asked angrily.

Emily gritted her teeth. "There's a handgun in the bottom of the bag in the secret side pocket. Unloaded."

Spencer dug around in Emily's Army duffle bag and pulled it out slowly. "This isn't modern military," she said.

"It's my father's. From when he was on tour," Emily said flatly.

"We're going to leave you two to talk things out," Aria said as she steered a very angry Hanna and Spencer out of the hotel room.

Alison stepped over the broken television set and sat down in one of the chairs by the desk in the corner, her expression emotionless.

"Ali," Emily began.

"Shut up Emily," Alison said shortly.

"Ali," Emily said again.

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Alison screamed as she stood up to Emily's chest and slammed it with both of her fists.

"Ali... Ali please," Emily begged as she tried to grab the blonde's flailing fists from inducing egg sized bruises. She wanted so desperately to cry in defeat. Why couldn't she?

"YOU TRIED TO LEAVE ME!" Alison was wailing now.

"Ali, baby. Please listen to me," Emily said again.

Alison continued to push Emily away as Emily tried to get her to look her in the eyes.

"Alison Dilaurentis, I love you," Emily said.

Alison collapsed into her arms and cried into her chest, her tears soaking Emily's shirt.

"I'm sick, baby girl... I don't want to admit that but I am... You're not safe around me. I had to leave," Emily admitted as she thought back to her conversation with Rollins.

"I'm safest when I am with you. Please, Emily... I love you more than anything in this world. Don't leave me... Please, God, don't leave me. If you want to kill yourself, come to me... I'll help you... I love you for gosh sakes. You're all I have left," Alison sobbed.

Emily pulled Alison off of her chest and lightly kissed her lips, the heart in the center of her chest finally beginning to ache.

"I love you. Shh... You're safe now," Emily whispered.

She sat like that for hours on the edge of the bed with Alison clinging to her, too afraid to let go, and too afraid to be alone.

But Emily couldn't help but think she was still simply better off dead or gone.

Alison would never truly be safe until she was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so this is about as dark as it gets on the suicide/self harm spectrum for this story. The rest of the work isn't dark in that manner (thankfully.) 
> 
> Obviously Emily has severe PTSD, there is no doubt about it. She's lost. She feels like she's suspended in time without having anywhere to go. It's hard for her and it was extremely hard for me to write this and see how miserable she was being trapped in a place that gives her PTSD as well. Everywhere she turns is a bad memory, every person she sees is a distant reminder. 
> 
> Speaking of PTSD, my own PTSD has been acting up lately. It seems I get triggered almost every day and I'm so emotionally exhausted. I really wish this wasn't the case, but talking about it has definitely made me feel just a little bit better. 
> 
> Wednesday will be the next update.   
> *spock greeting*   
> Goodnight!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a monstrous chapter. 
> 
> Be prepared for it!

"Private Fields, you're not answering the question. Did you, or did you not, willingly try to take your own life?" One of the VA doctors whom Emily recognized as Dr. Aronson asked.

Emily sat back in her chair across from him, her jaw clenched. They had stripped her of her uniform and weapons. The only thing she was allowed to wear was her hospital gown and arm monitor so they knew where she was if she decided to go outside in the yard. They only let Alison visit her if she was "having a good day." So naturally, she never saw her. She didn't wish for the blonde to ever see her like this.

She had lost count. Was it three weeks? Four? She had no idea.

"Jeez, will you let me out already? I'm fine. It was a rash decision. But I'm good now," Emily objected.

Aronson sighed and pushed a glass of water towards the tan brunette. "It's a permanent solution to a temporary problem. What if Ms. Marin hadn't found you in time?"

Emily groaned and rolled her eyes. "Yes, we've been over this. I would've been dead. Possibly."

"Possibly?" Aronson asked, slightly miffed.

"I could've changed my mind. You never know. I had the love of my life with me, so, who knows?" Emily said.

Aronson scratched the back of his neck and shook his head. "I think we're done here."

"Am I getting let go of?" Emily asked hopefully.

Aronson wouldn't meet her eyes. "Legally I have no reason to keep you here. You show no more signs of sickness besides PTSD. But heed my warning. Every veteran in here thinks they're fine. They think they don't belong here. But then they get out, and they realize just how wrong they really were."

He left the room. Emily was lost in thoughts of his words when she felt the guards take her back to her room. Her roommate, Alex, sat on her bed throwing a rubber ball at the wall and catching it again.

"How was your grill session? Anything cookin?" Alex asked sarcastically.

Emily chuckled. "I'm getting released."

Alex stopped throwing the ball. "No way. How'd you do it?"

Emily shrugged. "Played dumb. They kept me in here for being suicidal. But if I show no signs of being suicidal, they gotta let me go. I suggest you try it."

"Hey, I didn't try to kill myself," Alex pointed out.

Emily sighed. "Why are you even in here?"

"It's funny really. I'm not supposed to be in here. They think I have a weapon addiction. And an addiction to war," Alex said.

"How so?" Emily asked wearily.

"When I was out and about, I never went anywhere without a gun. I thought I saw cells. Thousands of them. Taliban members crawling the streets," Alex muttered.

"Yeah, I know what cells are. You hurt someone?" Emily asked.

Alex shuddered. "I never meant to. They joked about it. As though I were a defect. Just some broken veteran coming back from the war she couldn't handle. He reached into his jacket. I thought he was going for a gun. I shot him."

Emily swallowed. "Did he die?"

Alex's eyes never lifted from the floor. "Immediately."

Emily walked over and patted the other girl on the back. "You're gonna get out of here. You're a soldier. You're stronger than most."

"Em... We're all Soldiers, Marines, Sailors, and Airmen, in this hospital. We've all faced the terrors of war. And most of us are never gonna leave. I'm closer to getting out than I was. But I still have issues. I still have nightmares. I'm still dangerous," Alex concluded.

"Fields!" One of the guards yelled.

"What!?" Emily yelled back.

"Get ready! You're going out to the yard. You've got a visitor!"

Emily shook her head. "I don't have any. I don't want to see anybody. Turn them away!"

She heard the guard chuckle. "Strict orders not to. You don't get a say this time. Get your ass going."

* * *

Emily sat on the bench outside picking at her cuticles. She almost always hated sitting out here in the yard with her long flowing gown. She felt almost bare.

She watched a couple of the patients milling around talking to each other. Some even talked to themselves. It really was a shame that people ended up this way. The people who served and protected The United States. These were the people who put their lives on the line.

"My God, Fields. Didn't I warn you? I told you not to do anything rash," a deep yet familiar voice sounded.

Emily turned around to see the man strutting towards her, his hands in his pockets. Half the side of his face was covered in terrible scars, yet he wore his uniform proudly.

"Lieutenant Meyers," Emily said, standing up to greet the officer.

"It's been a while. I have to say though, you definitely are not in a place I thought you'd be," Meyers said sadly.

"How'd you know I was here?" Emily asked.

Meyers shrugged and sat down across from her. "I heard it somewhere through the grapevine. 'The Hunter' has been put down, so to say. Somebody sent in a distress call. Your mother told me."

"I bet she isn't too proud," Emily said stiffly.

Meyers chuckled darkly. "Oh, no she isn't. She said your girlfriend sent in the distress call."

"Alison did, yes. She just wanted to save me from my 'terrible fate.' She tries to see me. I won't let her," Emily said.

"So Alison is the girlfriend. You finally got her," Meyers said, grinning.

"First night I got back, actually. Guess we really were supposed to be together. But she didn't sign up for this. She didn't sign up for a veteran with PTSD and suicidal tendencies. She signed up for a girlfriend who would love and protect her. Her sister was murdered and here I am acting like an asshole child," Emily spat.

"So she put you in time out. Bravo Ms. Dilaurentis," Meyers praised.

"I never mentioned her last name," Emily said suspiciously.

Meyers smiled. "No need to. I saw it on your report. The distress call was reported by her. Usually people keep it anonymous but... Not her."

"Funny. She used to like to be '-A for Anonymous.' " Emily joked darkly.

"See, that's your problem, Fields. You're obsessed with the hunt. You're obsessed with anything that will give you clues. I bet you're even looking for the murderer of Charlotte Dilaurentis," Meyers said.

Emily froze. "How would you even know that?"

"Rosewood's a small town. It's still the talk. I learned all about your past, Emily. Charlotte Dilaurentis, AKA, Charles, AKA, -A. How she tortured you, and put you in a doll house. It sounds like you hated her a lot. Yet you're looking for her killer. Why?" Meyers questioned.

"Alison loved Charlotte. She's the reason she stayed here. When Charlotte died, Alison got hurt. I didn't like Charlotte, sure. But I certainly didn't wish for her to die," Emily growled.

"But didn't you? She ruined your life, Fields. Any chance you had at swimming professionally, disappeared the minute Charlotte caused you to tear your rotator cuff. You couldn't come back from that. Then, she kept Alison here. The one place you wanted to escape. She stayed for her sister, instead of leaving with you," Meyers pushed harder.

"Why are you questioning me? Who sent you?!" Emily demanded.

"Nobody. Myself. Did you kill that girl, Fields?!" Meyers demanded back.

"NO, I DID NOT KILL CHARLOTTE DILAURENTIS!" Emily roared.

Meyers sat back, his bad blue eye seemed to be popping out of his scarred skull. He reminded Emily of Mad Eye Moody from Harry Potter. Terrible comparison, but it was the truth.

"There's something terrible going on here, Fields. You and I both know it. You know something's up. The cops haven't found anything. Use your head. If you're truly 'The Hunter,' then you'll find who did this. You'll stop fighting the PTSD, and listen to it. That's why you were so good in the desert. You listened. You observed. You paid attention," Meyers whispered so that the guards behind him wouldn't hear.

"Why are you telling me this?" Emily asked.

"They suspect you. You have the most motive. They don't think the deployment was enough. They think you paid somebody to kill Charlotte or altered your alibi. I was their final solution to getting you to talk. In the desert, I didn't want you to become this. I warned you not to. But you did. There's no going back. So use what you have. Especially since you became so good at it," he mumbled.

Behind him, Tanner approached, her toad like grin spreading across her face. "Thank you Lieutenant. You may go now," she dismissed.

"Bye Fields. See you around," Meyers nodded and stalked off with one of the guards.

Tanner handed Emily her uniform. "I figured you might want that. You've got to be somewhere, don't you?"

* * * 

Emily noticed the silence of the apartment before she fully stepped into it. She looked in on the bowl on the counter and noticed Alison's keys.

 _She's home. Welcome back baby,_ The Other Alison cooed.

This time, however, Emily didn't ignore it. Meyers was right. Throughout the entire war, The Other Alison in her head was what fought alongside her. Throwing her away hardly seemed fair.

Emily kicked off her tan combat boots and edged along the hallways suspiciously and found Alison laying in their bed curled up with the TV on mute.

"Ali?" She asked softly.

Alison jumped in bed and turned to look at the tall brunette standing in the door frame in her camouflage uniform.   
Her eyes were ringed in red.

"You're home," she choked out.

Emily couldn't bear to see Alison like this. She cried herself to sleep? How long had this been going on?

"I didn't mean to startle you," Emily said as she slowly approached the bed.

Alison sat up and threw the covers off of her legs so that she could walk to the other side of the queen sized bed across from Emily.

"I didn't know you got out," Alison said sharply.

She was angry. Emily could feel the waves of heat radiating from the shorter blonde.

"I'm sorry Alis-,"

"Sorry doesn't cut it Emily. First you try to kill yourself. Then you won't let me see you for a month? What the hell?" Alison cried.

"I couldn't bear for you to see me like that. I was in a mental hospital. For soldiers. That's embarrassing enough as it is," Emily scolded.

"You tried to kill yourself!" Alison yelled.

"I have PTSD Alison! You put me in a hospital! I was off fighting in a war. I killed people. Many people. I'm not going to just be okay! I'm obviously going to have problems. How did you expect me to come back 100% fine?" Emily asked.

"I didn't. I didn't at all. I knew you came back with more than just sand in your boots. But my sister was killed. I get you're hurting, but so am I! We're supposed to protect each other. I put you in that hospital because I realized, I'm not enough to keep you from taking a gun and shooting yourself! I almost lost you!" Alison sobbed.

Emily watched as Alison leaned against the wall across from her, sliding until she was sitting on the ground.

Her weeps echoed around the room which caused Emily to move around the bed to sit down next to Alison and pull her into her arms.

"I'm so sorry, Alison. I love you. I'm so so sorry," Emily whispered into the blonde's hair.

Alison leaned her head up and kissed Emily's lips. Emily could taste her salty tears.

"I missed doing that while you were away," Alison sniffed.

"You don't have to worry. I'm never going away again," Emily whispered as  she kissed Alison lightly.

"Can we just... Go to bed?" Alison asked, her eyes still puffy from crying.

"Yes, baby. Of course we can," Emily nodded.

Alison climbed into their bed, pulling the covers up to her neck. Emily attempted to follow but Alison held her hand against Emily's heavily muscled chest.

"You can't sleep in here for a while. Sleep on the couch," Alison said, her voice cracking.

Emily felt her heart rip to pieces inside of her chest, but she nodded. "Okay baby girl. I love you."

Alison smiled sadly and caressed Emily's cheek. "I love you too. Goodnight."

Emily leaned down to kiss Alison who had her arms kicked around Emily's neck.

Alison let go of the brunette's neck and turned on her side so Emily couldn't see her begin to sob again.

"Goodnight," Emily whispered, heartbroken.

She stood up straight, closed the door behind her, and walked into the living room where the messy couch sat. It was still unmade from the last time Emily had slept there. On her last night before being taken to the VA hospital.

 _Go to the place where all the dead lay, uncover the truth and find Charlotte's way,_ The Other Alison said sleepily in her head.

"What do you mean?" Emily asked herself.

 _Oh Em. If you ever want to sleep with me again, I suggest you find out soon. Tick tock_ , The Other Alison said.

"You're supposed to be helping me. Just tell me what to do!" Emily demanded. She tried to keep her voice low in case Alison heard her in the next room.

 _Go to the place where all the dead lay, uncover the truth and find Charlotte's way,_ The Other Alison repeated.

"The dead lay in a cemetery. Her grave? That won't help me uncover the truth. She's already buried," Emily muttered to herself as she plopped down onto the couch.

No answer.

Emily groaned into her hands.

_Tick tock, Em._

_Tick Tock._

_* * *_

Emily bid Alison goodbye for work. The blonde almost wouldn't meet eyes with her.

"You're going to be safe, right? No guns. No knives. Just you at work recruiting soldiers," Alison said.

Emily nodded and crossed her heart. "Scout's honor."

Alison smiled grimly. "I love you," she said.

"I love you more," Emily whispered as Alison leaned in and kissed Emily's lips, almost teasing her with her tongue.

Emily recoiled in agony as she realized Alison was purposely holding back. Maybe she really was afraid of her. Emily couldn't tell anymore.

There was a single night where Alison almost let Emily into the bedroom. They had been kissing, and Emily felt like it would lead to more.

But Alison stopped in front of the doorframe and kissed Emily goodnight before shutting the bedroom door in her face.

It wasn't meant to be a rude gesture, but Emily couldn't help but feel it was. She was basically watching the love of her life slip through her fingers.

She was honestly surprised Alison was letting her sleep in the same apartment at all. Sure, they lived together. But Alison could've kicked Emily out. It's not like Emily didn't have a place to go. She had The Radley. Or any of the other girls' houses.

Alison loved Emily. Emily was sure of it. She just seemed to think she was disappointed in her. Rightfully so. Emily packed all her things, moved into a hotel room, and tried to shoot herself.

And now as crazy as it seemed, she was listening to the tiny voice in her head trying to figure out what to do when it came to the Charlotte Cold Case that Lieutenant Tanner and Rosewood PD were working on.

After Alison left for work, Emily got into her car. She was dressed in her uniform, but she wasn't going to work.

She drove out to the Hastings' household where Spencer was helping her mother do business for her senatorial campaign.

Across the yard, the tall Dilaurentis house stood, completely empty and ominous like. Emily had so many memories of that house. The majority of them weren't good.

"Em!" Spencer called once she saw Emily's old beat up Toyota pull up in the driveway. She was carrying Hastings campaign posters in her arms.

It creaked with a groan and stopped with a cough. Emily got out and fixed her hat on her head, making sure the bun had no fly aways.

"You still have that car?" Spencer asked, hiding a smile.

Emily shook her head and grinned back. "It's a piece of shit now, but it runs. I can't complain."

Spencer hugged her. Emily tried her best to hug back, she still wasn't all that used to it.

"What are you doing here? How are you feeling?" Spencer asked.

Emily shrugged. "I guess I feel like I always do. Normal? Confused that I'm part of a murder investigation again?"

Spencer scoffed. "Yeah, I know that feeling. But hey, come in. My mom would be more than happy to see you. It's a little busy in there, but you'll live."

"How busy?" Emily asked nervously.

Spencer's smile faltered. "It's pretty crowded. What's wrong? Is it the PTSD?"

"I just don't like big crowds," Emily said flatly.

"Oh," Spencer said. "That's okay. We can go around the back. You up for that?"

Emily nodded slowly and Spencer laughed.

They walked around the building and came around to where the large barn stood. Spencer looked up at it.

"Yeah, this is where I'm staying," She said.

"The barn? Finally," Emily joked.

"Yeah, I know right? Couldn't live in it in high school but Melissa could. Now it's all mine because Melissa's in London. It only took five fucking years," Spencer said sarcastically.

Emily laughed. "I haven't really gotten a chance to catch up with you. How's Toby?"

Spencer's face grew dark. "Nobody told you?"

Emily shook her head confusedly.

"Toby and I are no longer an item. We broke up a couple years ago. We just couldn't do the distance. He was a Rosewood cop. I am a Georgetown business major. The two really don't mix," Spencer said weakly.

"He still lives here?" Emily asked stunned.

"Where else would he go? Em, to us, Rosewood is hell. We all wanted to leave the minute we could. But there were some people who never wanted to leave. Toby, Alison-,"

"Alison wants to leave, okay? She does. She's just... She's caught up with the investigation," Emily objected. She looked around to make sure nobody was watching them.

Spencer raised an eyebrow. "You're not supposed to be here, are you?"

Emily shot her a glare. "If you tell Alison, I swear to Go-,"

"I'm not. Chill. The only thing Alison and I have in common is our obnoxiously impeccable taste in novels.   
But seriously. Before she calls and figures out you're not at work. Why are you here? I know you're not here to catch up," Spencer asked seriously.

Emily sighed and lowered her voice. "I have a riddle. I need help solving it."

Spencer scrunched her eyebrows. "What am I? The book teller? Why do you think I'll know how to crack it?"

Emily huffed in aggravation. "I could've gone to Aria for assistance. But I doubt that'll be of much help considering the fact that she's too busy writing a book with her ex, Ezra."

Spencer groaned. "Ugh, okay. Fine. Just this once. We're not going behind Ali's back all over again just to play games, okay?"

"It's not a game, Spencer. It's an actual riddle. It may lead me to who killed Charlotte," Emily said.

Spencer raised her eyebrows and pulled Emily into the barn and shut the door tightly behind her. She locked at least seven locks. Emily counted the best she could.

"Have enough protection?" Emily asked sarcastically.

Spencer glared at her. "You can never be too careful in Rosewood. I had Toby install them the minute we got back here after Charlotte was killed. I'm definitely not playing games anymore."

Emily shrugged. "Touché. Alison won't even go near her old house. It's like she would burn it down if she could."

Spencer laughed darkly. "I think we all want to burn that house down. It's the entrance to hell."

Emily chuckled. "I thought you said you and Toby ended it."

"We did," Spencer said as she led Emily deeper into the barn so they could sit.

"Yet he's still installing locks on your doors?" Emily asked.

Spencer rolled her eyes. "It's a long story. We're still friendly. We still care about each other. He's just... He's with Yvonne now."

"Yvonne? Who's Yvonne?" Emily asked.

Spencer groaned. "Why do you have to ask so many questions?"

"Why do you have to be so vague? If you weren't, I wouldn't ask so many questions!" Emily said.

Spencer rubbed her chin. "Yvonne is the daughter of my mother's electoral enemy. She's the other candidate's daughter, in simpler words."

"Damn. I'm sorry Spence," Emily apologized.

"It's whatever. Okay. So what's your riddle?" Spencer asked, moving onto a different subject.

Emily sat down next to her and sighed. "Okay. This may seem a bit crazy."

"We've been tormented by -A for how many years? How crazy could crazy be?" Spencer questioned.

"Fair point," Emily said. " _Go to the place where all the dead lay, uncover the truth and find Charlotte's way."_

Spencer wrote it down the best she could and stared at the words. "That's not creepy at all," she stated sarcastically.

"Tell me about it," Emily said.

Spencer sighed. "Where did you say you got this riddle?"

Emily stiffened. "I didn't."

Spencer cocked an eyebrow. "Okay, well, mind telling me?"

"Does it matter?"

"Yes, kinda," Spencer said suspiciously.

Emily shrugged. "I don't know. I just think I saw it somewhere," she lied.

Spencer stared at it some more, not picking up on Emily's defensive tone. "A cemetery? Maybe? But that wouldn't make much sense."

"Why not?" Emily asked.

Spencer grimaced. "Having a senator mother has its perks. I've done my digging."

"Spencer!" Emily hissed.

"What?! Don't tell me you haven't thought of it either!"

"You said we weren't going to go back to our old ways. Yet you're snooping around again like Nancy Drew!" Emily scolded.

"I wasn't snooping! I was simply conducting my own investigation since the cops aren't getting anywhere with theirs!" Spencer snapped.

"Why do you care?" Emily asked.

"What?" Spencer retorted.

"Why do you care who killed Charlotte?" Emily demanded.

Spencer groaned into her hands. "I was going to face it head on, okay? Whoever killed Charlotte, is dangerous. They're not just after her!"

"What are you talking about Spencer?" Emily shook her shoulders.

Spencer pursed her lips. "It can't be the cemetery. Because Charlotte's body isn't buried there."

"What?!" Emily asked, sick.

"It's in the morgue! I read in the report. They've kept the body for the investigation. They claimed they buried it so the killer would think they laid it to rest and closed the case," Spencer said.

"Then they've lied to Alison. She thinks Charlotte is six feet under," Emily whispered.

"No, Em. She doesn't," Spencer said.

"Yes she does. She told me so. She visits the grave every Saturday," Emily stuttered.

Spencer hung her head, not meeting Emily's eyes. "Then you aren't the only one who is keeping secrets. Alison knows Charlotte is in the morgue. Because she's the one who sighed the authorization in the report."

* * *

Emily still couldn't believe she had been lied to. It's one thing to lie about something you had to keep secret, but to purposely lie for no real reason? And then to visit an empty grave every weekend? It made Emily sick.

Her and Spencer snuck down into the morgue of the hospital where the crime lab also conducted their investigations.

Behind them, Spencer locked the door.

"Okay, Em. Hurry. We don't have much time."

"I'm trying to figure it out Spencer. 'Uncover the truth and find Charlotte's way.' What the hell does that mean?" Emily asked half to Spencer, half to herself.

Spencer shivered around the many cold bodies in their bags. "I don't know, and I don't care. Just find her and let's get out of here. This place is freaking me out."

Emily rolled her eyes as she went from bag to bag checking name tags. "Just do me a favor, okay? Get the report. We're going to compare."

"Why?" Spencer asked.

"Because if there's one thing this town can't do, it's write an accurate police and/or autopsy report," Emily muttered.

They heard the doorknob begin to wiggle.

"Spencer!" Emily hissed.

Spencer closed the medical cabinet and ducked down into the corner as the door came crashing forward.

"I told you learning how to pick locks was a useful skill. But none of you believed me!" A high familiar voice said.

"Hanna?" Emily asked as she stood up from shrinking in the shadows and saw her and Aria standing in the doorway.

"Emily?" They said together.

"And Spencer! Yeah, hi," Spencer piped up, making herself known.

"What are you guys doing here?" Aria asked.

"We could ask you the same thing," Spencer said.

"Whoa whoa. Wait a second. Em, when did you get out?" Hanna asked suspiciously.

"Wait seriously? Ali didn't tell you?" Emily asked.

Spencer narrowed her eyes and bumped into Emily's arm. "Seems like Ali isn't telling anybody _anything_ lately."

"Okay, guys, stop. Let's get back to the real question at hand. Why are _you_ guys here?" Aria asked again.

Spencer turned on her. "And I asked you why _you_ were here."

Aria and Hanna looked at each other confused. "You texted us and told us to get Charlotte's autopsy report. You said you were too busy with the campaign and couldn't make it but that you would meet up with us tonight."

Spencer's breath caught. "No, I didn't."

Emily stared at her, and the other girls followed her lead.

"Are you popping pills again, Spencer?" Hanna asked.

"No! I swear! I didn't text you guys!" Spencer exclaimed.

The lights in the room began to flicker and slammed off.

"Oh my god!" Aria yelled.

Hanna went back for the door and tugged on the knob. "It's locked."

Emily searched for her phone in her cargo pants and flipped on the flashlight.

"Guys, we're not in high school anymore. Let's use this as an opportunity to get answers," Emily said.

"We are locked in a room with dead bodies and you want to _keep_ looking?!" Hanna exclaimed.

"Yes, and?" Emily asked.

"They could come alive and eat our brains or something!"

Emily rolled her eyes, grateful that nobody could see. "That's the beauty of death Hanna. Things that die, stay dead."

"Okay, look. I'm officially freaked. Just find what you need to find, Em. And let's get out of here," Aria said.

"Is anybody else worried that somebody texted you guys to meet us here and you thought it was me but it wasn't?" Spencer asked.

"What, you think it could be another  
-A?" Aria asked as Emily bumped into her and kept looking at the bodies lining the racks.

"Something along those lines, yeah," Spencer said.

"Guys. Seriously, -A is dead that's why we're here!" Emily snapped.

"Are you sure of that?" Spencer exclaimed viciously.

Emily whipped her head around to the sound of Spencer's voice and shined her flashlight on them.

"I'm not sure of anything anymore. My own girlfriend is lying to me. But I know she's dead. There's an autopsy report, which means there's a body," Emily said.

"Ali had an autopsy report too. But look at her! Far from dead!" Aria said.

"So you're thinking this could be another Bethany Young situation?" Spencer asked.

"Guys, seriously. Stop jumping to conclusions!" Emily demanded.

They heard a munching sound coming from the corner. Aria latched onto Spencer. "Okay, what the fuck was that?"

Emily rolled her eyes and shined the light in the corner where Hanna was sitting reaching into her purse chewing on a couple of M&M'S.

"How can you seriously eat in here?" Aria asked.

Hanna looked down guiltily. "I eat when I'm stressed."

Emily felt as though her brain was about to explode when her phone dinged signaling a message.

All the girls in the room tensed up.

"Relax. It's just a message from Ali," Emily said.

"Still not a reason to relax. Alison is hiding stuff from us. You know it, and I know it," Spencer said.

Aria looked at the two of them confused, the other girls finally turning their cell phone flashlights on as well. "Ali? Why Ali?"

Spencer bit her lip. "Charlotte isn't in the ground. We went to a funeral with an empty casket."

"What?" Aria exclaimed.

Somewhere in the corner, they heard Hanna choke.

"Yeah. That's why I'm looking for the report. Alison signed the release to keep Charlotte's body in the morgue," Spencer said.

"Then what's Em doing?" Aria asked.

"She's looking for her body," Spencer said.

Aria scrunched her face. "Oh, God. That's morbid. I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole."

Emily checked the message on her phone.

_Alison - How's work?_

_Emily - Fine. Boring as always haha_

_Alison - Do you want to get lunch?_

_Emily - Sure. Twelve sound good?_

_Alison - Perfect (: I love you._

_Emily - I love you too._

"I'm meeting Ali for lunch at twelve. So let's get this over with," Emily said.

"Are you serious?" Spencer asked in disbelief.

"If I don't, she'll question me. What other choice do I have?" Emily snapped.

"Guys, let's be real here. I'm sure Ali has a reasonable explanation for what's in that report," Aria said.

"Yeah, like Ali has a reasonable explanation for anything," Spencer said.

"It's true. One time she flushed the toilet when I was taking a shower so the water got really hot, and I got burnt. So not cool," Hanna muttered.

The girls all stared at her. Emily rolled her eyes.

"Why don't you just ask Ali about the report?" Aria asked. "She's your girlfriend. She'll have to be honest with you."

Emily groaned as she checked another body that wasn't Charlotte. "Technically she doesn't have to. And I would, except she thinks I'm at work right now."

"You lied to her?" Aria asked, shocked.

"Nothing ever stopped her from lying to me! Why should I be the honest one?" Emily asked angrily.

Emily hopped down from where she was checking the bodies on the top rack. "She's not in here."

"You're joking," Hanna said.

"Do I look like I'm joking Hanna?" Emily snapped.

"Em, seriously. Take it down a notch," Spencer said as she noticed Hanna's hurt expression in the beam of her phone.

"No, Spencer, I can't. Look at us. We're sitting ducks. She's not even in here!"

"We don't need her body when we have this," Aria said as she pulled the report out from behind her back.

"Oh thank God," Spencer said as she grabbed it out of the short brunette's hand.

They opened it and each shined their lights on the pages within it.

Spencer held one up. "See? This is Ali's full agreement to keeping Charlotte in the morgue."

"Why would she do that?" Aria asked.

Spencer shrugged. "Probably to keep her grave from being dug up again in case they ever found any clues. And you're sure she never mentioned this to you, Em?"

Emily nodded her head. "I'm positive. I would remember that. Also, we wouldn't be making special trips out to Rosewood Cemetery if she had told me the truth. She wants me to believe Charlotte is buried out there."

"It's not just you, Em. She wants us all to think that," Hanna said.

They looked through more of the papers. "Charlotte's death was originally made to look like a suicide," Spencer said.

Emily groaned into her hands. The time on her phone read 11:30.

"Guys, we're running out of time," Emily said.

"Does it matter? We're locked in here!" Aria said.

Emily grabbed the folder from the desk and began to stuff it away when Hanna grabbed her hand. "Oh, no. Absolutely not."

"Why?" Emily asked, confused.

"You're sleeping with the enemy!" Hanna exclaimed.

Emily glared at her through the dark.

Spencer rested her hand on Emily's shoulder. "She's got a point, Em. Until we know whether or not Ali is on our side, this folder isn't safe anywhere near her. I know you love her, but if she got ahold of this, she would know you've been lying. And we would all go down for it. Not to mention, Ali has been buddy-buddy with the cops since Charlotte died. This would be the ultimate betrayal if she caught you with this."

Hanna seemed proud with herself that for the first time in ever, she was right.

Emily sighed and forked over the folder which Hanna grabbed gleefully. "Great!"

"Ha, you thought," Spencer said as she took it out of the blonde's hands.

"It was my idea. Shouldn't I be able to keep it?" Hanna pouted.

"And risk you losing it? No way," Aria said.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Ar," Hanna said.

Aria smiled. "Han, I love you. But I think we should all just agree that Spencer is the best option for this one. She can take pictures of the pages and get it back in here before anybody notices it's missing."

Spencer grinned. "Team Sparia, back in action."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Okay, guys, let's just get the hell out of here."

"How do you plan on doing that?" Aria asked.

"Did you forget? I'm in the army. We're trained for these types of situations," Emily said with a wink.

She reared back and kicked at the door with her foot. It shot off its hinges into the wall across from it.

"Emily!" The girls screamed.

"We're trying to stay inconspicuous! Breaking down doors isn't how we do that!" Spencer hissed.

"I think I just peed my pants!" Hanna yelped.

"What, did you want to wait for the coroner to get back? That would've been a tough one to explain. 'Oh wow, sorry. I got locked in your office trying to steal confidential medical records on a murder victim that I'm suspected of killing'," Emily said.

Spencer shook her head. "Whatever. Let's just get out of here."

Emily made sure she was the last one out before propping the door back into the wall, the sick feeling in her stomach only growing sicker at the thought of meeting Alison for lunch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter speaks for itself, really. 
> 
> Some comedy, some mystery. 
> 
> I guess you'll have to read to find out more. *winks* 
> 
> Next update   
> Saturday.
> 
> See you then.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry for the delay in chapters... 
> 
> I find myself letting my mind slip daily.

"Should I get a ham sandwich or turkey?" Alison asked as Emily sat idly with her menu covering her phone in her lap.

Underneath the table, Alison's feet were resting on top of Emily's tan combat boots. Emily couldn't help but stare at them occasionally as she texted her group message, her eyes not being able to meet the blonde's across from her.

Spencer - _Is A doing anything?_

Aria -  _Come on Spence. Don't call her A._

Spencer -  _You know I didn't mean it like that_.

Emily -  _No. She's acting completely normal._

Hanna -  _I know what you want to do daddy (;_

Emily -  _Um..._

Spencer -  _Wtf_

Aria -  _Hanna?_

Hanna - _OMG! I'm so srry. That wasn't meant for you guys_

Spencer - ...

Hanna - _It was for Caleb_

Aria - _I'm not even going to ask._

When Emily didn't answer, Alison tapped her leg with her foot. "You okay, babe?"

Emily's head shot up. "Hmm?"

"I asked if you were okay," Alison said worriedly.

Emily smiled quickly. "Yeah, no I'm good. Everything's fine. The girls are just texting about Spencer's Mom's Campaign."

Alison smiled. "I hope she's doing well."

"She is," Emily agreed.

The silence continued again.

Spencer - _I'm reading more of the file. It sounds like they are doing a lot of testing on the body in a separate morgue._

Aria - _Why_?

Spencer - _I don't know. But Ali requested it._

Emily - _She did?_

Hanna - _This is crazy!!!!_

Emily - _Not helping Hanna._

Hanna - _No, seriously. This is insane. Why would Alison be doing any of these things?? Why would she lie to you??_

Emily - _I haven't exactly given her many reasons TO trust me in the past couple months of us living together._

Aria - _But Hanna has a point. Ali is basically living two secret lives._

Spencer - _Lord knows that's what she's always done best. Vivian Darkbloom?_

Emily - _Guys, seriously. Come on. We're not teenagers anymore. Ali is past that part of her life just like we are._

Hanna - _Then why is she still acting like such a fucking child?_

Emily - _She's probably just trying to find out who killed her sister._

Hanna - _Em, we all are. That's why we're here. I should be in Tokyo right now with Caleb. Instead, I'm stuck in Rosewood for an investigation that HASN'T MOVED AT ALL._

Spencer - _Preach (:_

Aria - _True. Ezra and I are supposed to go on a book tour. But we keep pushing it back because of the investigation._

Emily - _I'm sorry this is ruining your lives. It's ruining mine too. I could be out fighting again._

Hanna - _Whoa back up. You want to fight again??_

Emily - _Idk_

Spencer - _Guys focus. Folder remember?_

"Em?" Alison asked.

Emily looked up from her phone and noticed the waiter standing above her holding a pen and notepad.

"Ah, sorry. I'll have the Tuscatta sandwich," Emily said.

"And for you?" He asked Alison.

She smiled. "I'll have the same but no pesto mayonnaise."

He took the menus and left. Emily turned her head to look back down at her phone.

Alison sighed. "I never wanted things to be bad between us."

Emily's head whipped up, her heart racing. "What do you mean?"

"I want us to be okay," Alison said.

"Why wouldn't we be?" Emily asked half heartedly.

 _Em, you and I both know there's no place for liars in a relationship. She knows something she doesn't want to admit. Don't ignore that,_ The Other Alison said.

"Because you think you're sick, Emily. And it's okay to have problems but... I love you. I know you know that," Alison said.

 _Then why are you lying to me?_ Emily thought to herself.

Emily shifted her weight in her seat.

"Please don't text... I know you probably feel as if you touch that phone way more than you touch me nowadays. But it's just hard not being able to talk to you," Alison said.

"Then talk to me, Alison. You've had all the opportunities in the world to talk to me. You're even the one who called us here for lunch," Emily snapped.

Alison sat back, her eyes not meeting Emily's. "Maybe this was a mistake."

Emily's eyes softened. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell I'm just... I'm on edge."

"Why are you on edge, Emily?" Alison asked exasperatedly.

Emily bit her tongue. "I can't tell you."

"What the hell does that mean?" Alison snapped.

"It's not code, Ali. I can't tell you," Emily said sternly.

"Then why bring it up?!" Alison asked angrily.

"You're the one who asked!" Emily said, her voice raising slightly.

Alison felt along the rim of her glass. "You know, you're really something else, Emily. We're supposed to _trust_ each other. Since when can't you tell me anything?"

Emily scoffed. "That's rich coming from you. I can't tell you anything, since you've been lying to me this whole time about Charlotte's burial. I'm sure there's a lot of shit that you know that you're not willing to tell me. I think the real question is, since when can't _you_ tell me anything?"

Alison sat in her chair, her body rigid and her face sickly pale. "H-How did you know about that?"

"My mother used to work at the police station, if you didn't remember. She has friends who are officers. Officers are people. People talk," Emily lied through her teeth.

"Emily... Please... I can explain," Alison began.

"Oh, I bet you can. Because you're still the same Alison Dilaurentis you were when -A was controlling the game," Emily stated.

"I'm not, Emily-,"

"Did you know that I am the number one suspect the police have?" Emily asked.

Alison froze. "What?"

Emily rolled her eyes. "I'm the first person on the suspect list. They think I killed Charlotte."

Alison rubbed her forehead tiredly. "The cops came to the apartment the night after you were bakeracted."

Emily stiffened. "And?"

"They asked questions about you. They questioned your sanity. They thought maybe you were sick from the war and wanted Charlotte gone. PTSD overload or something along those lines," Alison muttered.

"And what did you say?" Emily asked.

Alison shook her head. "I told them there was no way. I said you weren't even in the country and that you loved me. We're in love and you would never do anything to hurt me. Not ever."

Emily furrowed her eyesbrows. "It still doesn't fix things, Ali. Why have you been lying to me?"

"I can explain everything, but not here," Alison said, looking around.

"Why not here? What's the big deal?" Emily said.

"You never know who is listening in Rosewood, Emily. You should know that by now," Alison said coldly. It reminded Emily of how she used to be before she disappeared. The bitchy Alison. Emily shuddered.

  
"Fine, just promise me something," Emily said.

"Anything," Alison said.

"No more lies, okay? None. Absolutely none. Because I'm done with it Ali. I'm so fucking done with it," Emily growled.

Alison gulped and nodded. "Okay. I promise."

Emily rubbed her forehead. "I don't know how we're going to get through this."

"Emily-,"

"No, really. I have no idea."

They sat in silence, neither one of them able to speak.

"Em... I love you. You know I do. I would never try to hurt you ever. Not intentionally. I would never want to do that," Alison whispered.

Emily looked up at her and sighed. "I know you wouldn't. And don't get me wrong, I love you too. So much. More than anything in this world. But I just don't know if I can trust you."

Alison nodded, her expression looking hurt. "I understand."

Emily clenched her jaw, feeling as if she should say more. But she couldn't. Nothing came out of her mouth.

Alison stood up. "I really should probably be getting back to work. I remembered I have extra papers to grade."

Emily shook her head. "Ali, please. We haven't even gotten our food yet."

"I'm not hungry, okay?"

"Ali-,"

"What, you think I'm lying about that too? Just like with everything else?" Alison asked hotly.

"Ali, I never said that," Emily said.

"Does it matter? You told me you couldn't trust me. If the love of my life can't trust me, I guess that's where it's a shame on me," Alison spat.

Emily sat back and bit down hard on her tongue, fighting the urge to explode on Alison with words of utmost fire.

"See you at home," Alison said curtly without a glance towards Emily as she grabbed her purse and walked to her car.

Emily heard the blonde's engine start and the tires roll away. Her phone began to chime.

Spencer - _Guys, this report is a mess. But there's something seriously off about it._

Aria - _What else is new?_

Hanna - _You know what else is a mess? My life. I need to get my shit together._

Emily - _What did you find Spence?_

Spencer - _I think I found Charlotte's Way._

The waiter came over and placed Emily and Alison's sandwiches in front of her and the empty seat.

"Actually, my girlfriend had to leave. Could you box these for me?" she asked.

The waiter seemed annoyed but he smiled. "Sure."

Emily looked back down at her phone.

Emily - _Spence, I'll be there soon. And I'm bringing you lunch._

_* * *_

"You brought me lunch? From where?" Spencer asked once Emily had sidestepped into the barn.

"The Brew. Ali and I finished early," Emily said.

"Yeah, what happened with that?" Spencer asked.

Emily sighed. "She got pissed at me so she left before we even ate. Beggars can't be choosers, right?"

Spencer's eyes widened. "Seriously? What did you say?"

"I questioned her about Charlotte's burial," Emily said.

"You WHAT?" Spencer asked angrily.

"What?" Emily asked.

"Way to keep it on the DL, Em," Spencer scolded.

"I'm tired of scooting around things, Spencer! If I can get the answer, I'm going to get the answer. I'm not playing games with her," Emily snapped.

"Whatever. The cat's out of the bag now. What did she say?" Spencer asked.

"She told me she'd tell me at home. Then she got up and left. But she was acting suspicious," Emily said.

"Suspicious how?"

"I don't know! Suspicious like Ali!" Emily groaned.

Spencer unboxed the sandwich and took a long bite of it. "It's kind of dry."

"Ali doesn't like pesto mayonnaise," Emily said.

Spencer rolled her eyes. "Of course she doesn't."

"Do you want mine instead?" Emily asked.

Spencer nodded and reached for Emily's sandwich, Emily taking Spencer's half eaten one.

"Okay. So. I found something in the file I think you might want to see. The poem somewhat makes sense. Charlotte's Way," Spencer said in between bites.

Emily shook her head. "I'm not following."

" _Go to the place where all the dead lay, uncover the truth and find Charlotte's way_. Em, Charlotte's Way is the game. The -A Game," Spencer rambled.

Emily pushed her sandwich away. "Spencer. It's not clicking."

"Don't you get it? We have to go back to the dollhouse," Spencer said.

Emily's eyes grew wide. "Are you insane?"

"Think about it. Charlotte spent most of her time there. There are probably many places the cops didn't check because they didn't know just how good at hiding things Charlotte was," Spencer said.

"I'm not stepping foot in there again. Never," Emily said angrily.

"Em, please. We can take Hanna and Aria and Toby and Caleb and Ezra. Whoever you want. But I'm telling you, we have to go back," Spencer stated.

Emily bit her lip. "And what if there's something in there we don't want to see?"

"We'll have to deal with it. Emily... I don't want to go back there either. But we may not have a choice. Somebody killed Charlotte. And that person could still be here. What if Charlotte has something that could show us who that is?" Spencer asked.

Emily pondered it for a moment. "Don't you think the cops would've cleared that entire building out by now? I mean... Charlotte kept us in there for months and tortured us."

Spencer shrugged. "Maybe it's not what Charlotte has. Maybe it's what her killer has."

* * *

"Whoa, Spence, are you implying that whoever killed Charlotte is living in the old dollhouse?" Aria asked skeptically.

"I'm super convinced she's speeding again," Hanna said worriedly to Toby who's large arms were crossed against his chest.

"Spencer, this is ridiculous. No killer would do that. Especially not the home of his victim," Toby said.

"Are you sure? -A has done some pretty close things that have made us question it," Caleb said from his seat in the corner. His eyes were still half shut from his plane ride.

Toby glared at him. "Don't encourage her."

Ezra shrugged, Aria's legs draped over his. "I want to side with you Spence, but in a way, he's right. It's too obvious. Em, where did you say you got this poem again?"

Emily blushed and shook her head. "I don't remember."

Ezra squinted at her but dropped the subject.

_Em... What would you do if you were looking to kill somebody?_

Emily squeezed her eyes shut at the sound of Alison's bitchy voice. What would she do?

 _You know what you would do. Just like in the desert. Don't be stupid when I know you can be smart,_ The Other Alison said again.

"No... Spencer is right the killer definitely probably went to the dollhouse. But Toby has a point. He isn't living there," Emily said.

"Thanks Em," Toby said nodding in agreement.

Spencer scoffed sarcastically. "Yeah. _Thanks_ Em."

"He went there searching for something. Something he knew was close to Charlotte and the -A Game. He's looking for something," Emily said quietly.

"What could he possibly want? There's probably nothing even there anymore! That was years ago! And he could be long gone! Charlotte is dead!" Hanna objected after the silence that hung in the air.

"That's not true. Charlotte was smart. Unbelievably smart. Not even Mona could uncover her and Mona was the queen at having hiding places," Spencer said.

"But so is Alison," Ezra said.

Emily's head shot up. "What are you saying?"

He seemed uncomfortable. Aria rubbed his hand. "Emily, please."

"No. I want to know. How you guys all think Alison is in the middle of this. She didn't kill Charlotte. She _loved_ her!" Emily spat.

"Then why do all the signs point back to her? It's always been that way Emily. Alison has always been involved. From the beginning. And whoever this is, it isn't Charlotte anymore. This person took the law into their own hands to kill a patient of a mental facility. One that Alison had easy access to because they were sisters. That can't stand," Toby said.

"And it won't in a court, Emily. I know law. She's looking more and more guilty," Spencer said.

"Except we know nothing. We don't know when Charlotte died, how she was killed, who she was talking to before she died. We have a report that could be false, and a body that isn't even in Rosewood. We're chasing ghosts, and you all know it!" Emily yelled.

"What are you even talking about?" Caleb asked.

"We all hated Charlotte. Any one of us could have killed her. But we love and trust each other enough to know none of us would. Ali is one of us. And she loved her sister. If she truly wanted to kill her, she's had plenty of opportunities. She wouldn't have stayed in Rosewood to take care of her the way she did. Stop pointing fingers," Emily said.

Toby scratched the back of his head. "Alright. Who's driving?"

* * *

Emily stepped out of the back of Spencer's car and hugged her rifle close to her chest, feeling at home with her uniform still on.

"I can't believe you brought that thing," Hanna said as she stared uncomfortably at the muzzle.

"When in doubt, shoot the shit out of it," Emily said.

"That's comforting," Aria said as she snuck out behind them.

"Okay. Time to split into teams," Spencer said.

Emily shook her head. "I'll go alone."

"You're joking right?" Spencer asked.

Emily rolled her eyes. "No. I'm not. I've gone on a million convoy missions alone in Afghanistan. Trust me. I'm better off on my own. I'll let you know if I find something."

"At least let me go with you," Toby said.

"You need to protect Spencer and the rest of them. They don't know the first thing about self defense," Emily pointed out.

"Actually, not true. I've immersed myself in the culture of martial arts," Aria said.

They all stared at her, including Ezra.

"What? When you're small you have to be mighty," Aria muttered.

Emily ignored her comment. "Again. I go alone."

Each one of the groups debated over who would go where once they were inside the old dollhouse. Spencer, Toby, and Hanna went left, while Aria, Caleb, and Ezra went right.

Emily followed them up the middle with her rifle. Caleb and Ezra had baseball bats, and Toby and Spencer had two of Toby's police pistols.

Emily creeped in front and checked the surrounding area.

_Look for disturbed dirt. Don't want to hit an IED._

She shook the thought from her mind. There were no IEDs in Rosewood. This wasn't the desert.

"Stop," Emily commanded as Caleb was about to take a step into the clearing from the bushes.

She bent down close to the ground and saw the fresh boot tracks leading to the now rusty doors that led into the basement like house.

"Somebody's been here. Not that long ago. These tracks are recent," she said.

"That's definitely a man's sized boot," Spencer said.

"Or a girl with super big feet," Aria said.

"Or Bigfoot," Hanna added.

"Shut up, Hanna," they all said in unison.

Emily looked both ways before inching forward and pushing forth the bushes in which the opening to the dollhouse stood.

She could feel the cool air coming from beneath the ground.

 _Remember when I found you here Em? How scared you were? Yet how happy you were to see me? I saved you. Now do me a favor. Save me,_ The Other Alison hissed in her head.

Hanna and Aria held onto Caleb and Ezra. Even Spencer gripped Toby's arm despite them being separated.

Emily's hand rested on the cool latch as she pulled it open and revealed a pit of pure darkness. The terror crawled up their spines. She wasn't ready to be back here. None of the girls were.

Down below, it was where the real nightmAres started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so we're finally going to get to see the girls face their fears and the horrors they went through once more. I'm super excited to show you that part if you haven't read ahead. 
> 
> As I read through my work, I realize just how crappy my writing used to be. 
> 
> Weak. 
> 
> Next update tomorrow or Tuesday. Not sure yet. Probably Tuesday. Just check back.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man am I late or what? 
> 
> Enjoy.

The earth from above blocked the moon's glow into the old dollhouse entrance. Emily was surprised the cops hadn't locked it up since the last time Charlotte was here. Then again, it probably was. The person who was last here unlocked it.

 _Watch your step, Em. We all know how bad this will go down when I find out_ , The Other Alison teased.

Emily checked her watch. It was already 8:00 PM. Alison was probably wondering where she was.

"Alright guys. Search quickly, and thoroughly. I have to get home soon," Emily said.

"Why?" Spencer asked.

"Because Ali is expecting me. And if I don't make it home in time, she'll go looking for me. And I can't have that happen," Emily said.

"Let's split up now. Don't touch anything," Toby said.

The groups separated, leaving Emily alone. Emily didn't realize it, but she had begun to hum.

 _Hush little liar don't you cry... Charlotte's gonna sing you a lullaby,_ The voice in her head sang. Though it sounded darker than Alison's.

A chill ran down Emily's spine as she continued stalking into the darkness.

The corridors looked the same. Empty rooms layered the walls. Emily pushed into one of the rooms with her rifle aimed high.

"Clear," Emily muttered to herself once she'd finished making sure nobody else was in the room.

She checked in the small fake closets with the crudely painted, rotting doors. She noticed scratches on the wall.

This was where she'd been. This was -A's room for her when she was in the dollhouse. She had made those marks to keep time. Eventually, she lost count on how many days she had been there. You could never know when the sun rose and when the sun set.

Her breath caught in her throat as she backed out of the room, her fists clenching around the trigger of her rifle.

 _Hush little liar don't you cry... Charlotte's gonna sing you a lullaby_ , The voice said, this time louder in Emily's ears.

She heard scratching of heels coming from down the hall, Hanna's shrill voice screaming after it.

Emily gripped her rifle tightly and shot in the direction of Hanna's screams. "HANNA!"

She rounded the corner and slammed straight into the blonde, knocking her on her ass. Hanna looked up at her, wide eyed.

Emily bent down and held her shoulders worriedly.

"Are you okay?! What happened?! Where are Spencer and Toby?!" Emily asked viciously.

Hanna shook her head. "Somehow we got split up. I-I don't know... I thought I saw something."

"Why did you scream?!" Emily asked.

Hanna's eyes lowered to the floor. "I fell into a spider web."

"Are you serious?" Emily asked as she stood up angrily.

"Em, you don't understand. It was huge and really scary. It could've eaten my face off," Hanna blurted out.

Emily pinched the rim of her nose before Spencer and Toby ran around one of the opposite corners, panting wildly.

"We heard a scream!" Spencer said.

"She's fine. She's just afraid of spiders," Emily muttered.

"You're joking," Spencer said in disbelief.

Hanna shivered at the thought of the web getting tangled in her hair.

"Did you find anything Em?" Toby asked.

Emily shook her head curtly. "Just bad memories. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe we both were, Spence. This place is harmless."

"No," Hanna said.

They all looked at her questioningly.

"Hanna if you say one more thing about the spider eating your face off-," Emily started but the blonde cut her off.

"No! We got split up because I saw something. In Sara Harvey's old room," Hanna said.

Spencer squinted her eyes. "Want to take us there?"

Hanna nodded and stood up. She grimaced. "But first, Emily needs to give me a pat down to make sure the spider isn't on me still."

* * *

In the main corridor, near Sara Harvey's room, Ezra, Caleb, and Aria met up with Toby, Emily, Spencer, and Hanna.

_Hush little liar don't you cry... Charlotte's gonna sing you a lullaby._

Emily shivered again. The voice sounded nothing like Alison now.

Her friends stepped behind her and approached Sara Harvey's old dollhouse room cautiously.

Emily held up her rifle and checked to make sure nobody was in the room before Toby followed after her with his pistol.

"It's clear," Toby said to break the silence.

"Alright Hanna... What did you see?" Aria asked.

Hanna led them to the side and pointed to what was littering the ground.

More large muddy boot tracks led closer to the back corridors, similar to the ones they had seen before descending into the dollhouse.

"Somebody is here," Emily hissed.

Toby flashed his badge on his belt loop and held up his pistol. "Follow behind me. If they know a cop is here they'll come out."

"No. You're insane. They'll scram. I'll go. Alone. If you hear anything, Caleb, take Spencer's pistol and get out of here with the others. The only two who stay, are Toby and I," Emily hissed.

Toby looked as if he wished to argue, but seeing as Emily had more experience in this line of work, he pressed his lips together into a thin hard line.

Emily moved forward and down the corridor, slowly so her boots wouldn't echo against the floor and scare whoever was hiding in the next room over.

She leaned against the wall, the boot marks leading into one of the rooms closest to unfamiliar territory. They hadn't seen much of the dollhouse except for what they were forced to know. They never planned on coming back here and knowing exactly what the layout scheme of the place was.

Everybody gripped their weapons as Emily shot into the room followed closely by Toby and the others.

Where they expected somebody to be standing, was an empty room. The boot tracks stopped in a single place in the middle, no other signs of the intruder visible.

Emily breathed hard and felt Toby readjust his firing arm behind her. His gun was still raised.

They had reached a dead end.

"There's nobody here," Spencer said.

Emily looked at the boot marks. They led to nowhere. How was that even possible? Where did the person go? It was almost too dark to know for certain.

"I'm officially freaked out," Aria said.

"I don't get it. People don't just magically disappear," Ezra said as he comforted her.

"Either the person is still here, or they took off their boots as they left so we wouldn't be able to follow them," Emily said.

"But yet... They knew we would come here. They led us to this room. Why?" Spencer questioned.

Emily shined a the light from her phone on the tracks.

_Hush little liar..._

Emily moved the light up the wall and caught a hint of red.

_Don't you cry..._

More red appeared this time. Letters. They were dark red letters.

 _Charlotte's gonna sing you a lullaby,_ The voice cooed in her head. But now she knew for a fact it was no longer Alison.

She would recognize that voice anywhere. It was Charlotte's voice instead.

Spencer caught on. "Guys... Flash your lights at the wall in the direction the boot tracks are pointing."

They all flipped on their phones and pointed.

Emily heard Aria choke from behind her and bury her head in Ezra's chest. Spencer had begun to sob, her nails digging into Toby's arm. Even Hanna seemed pale as she began to lean against Caleb for support.

Emily's mind was blank as she read what was crudely written in what seemed like dark, dry blood.

_in Rosewood, bitches get buried. you're too lAte._

_i'm coming for you next._

_* * *_

Aria was the first one to shoot out of the dollhouse, her cheeks streaked with tears.

"This was supposed to be over!" She yelled.

"Aria-," Ezra said but Aria cut him off as the rest of the group appeared. Emily was the last one out.

"No. No! You weren't in there, Ezra! Now some freak is coming to kill us! Look! Guys, am I the only one stating the obvious? -A is back!" Aria shouted.

"Aria, -A is dead. And unless you believe in resurrection, that's not possible," Spencer said.

"I don't know what is anymore, Spencer. Is anybody else freaked out that somebody wrote on a wall in blood that they were coming for us?" Aria spat.

Spencer's eyes lowered to the ground, hurt by Aria's tone.

Emily rolled her eyes and stepped to the front of the group. "Alright Aria, enough. First of all, that stuff on the wall, isn't blood. It's paint. Second, Spencer is right. -A is dead. And third, if whoever this is really is going to try to kill us, I'm going to do weapon training. You're all going to learn how to shoot a gun."

"Sweet," Hanna said in awe as she made a finger gun and poked Emily in the boob with it.

"Knock it off," Emily said annoyedly as Hanna continued touching her breast.

Aria didn't seem convinced but she shut up and finally allowed Ezra to hold her.

Caleb stepped forward. "Okay. Everybody should just go home and try to forget about this. At least for now. We can call the police now and that's it. No more. Not unless it really needs to be discussed."

"Are you insane?" Spencer spun on him.

"That's basically how we all ended up fresh meat for -A five years ago! By meddling in things we had no business in. By being stupid teenagers!" Caleb snapped.

Toby cleared his throat. "Look, dude. Even if we wanted to get the police involved, they would want to know why we were here. We're trespassing. We don't even fully know how we got here. Emily doesn't remember where she got her poem. We came here based on Spencer's hunch. With the whole Charlotte investigation going on still, it will look very bad for all of us. I could lose my job."

"Then call it in anonymously!" Caleb shouted.

The woods became quiet as his shout echoed around the trees.

"Guys, fighting isn't helping anything. Shut up. Both of you," Emily snapped.

They all turned to look at her.

"What do you plan on doing?" Toby asked.

Emily smirked. "He thinks he's the only one hunting us. But little does he know, I'm The Hunter. And I'm hunting him."

* * *

The door of Emily and Alison's apartment creaked open as Emily tried to make as little noise as possible. The lights were off. Alison must've gone to sleep.

Emily stepped inside and closed the door. She slipped off her boots, jacket, and hat and lightly placed her keys in the bowl on the counter next to her girlfriend's.

She went to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of scotch, her mind whirling. Her insides were excited with the thought of the hunt. Whoever the sick bastard was, he would regret crossing Emily's path.

Emily took a sip, the liquid scorching the back of her throat. It felt so good to her. She hummed lightly to herself and was about to walk into the living room when the light clicked on.

Alison was sitting on the unmade couch that Emily considered her bed, her legs crossed and her expression agitated.

Emily stopped dead in her tracks. "You sat out here waiting for me in the dark? That's kind of creepy."

"Cut the shit, Emily. Where the hell have you been? It's almost midnight!" Alison exploded.

Emily chuckled darkly and took another sip of her scotch. "Does it really matter? You've been lying to me. AND we don't even sleep together anymore."

Alison's eyes shot back and forth from the liquor glass to Emily's face. "That doesn't mean I don't love you."

Emily felt a twinge in her heart but she ignored it. "Why are you even still awake? Go to bed, Ali."

Alison stood up and got close to Emily angrily so that she could smell the scotch on her breath. "You wanted to talk. Now let's fucking talk."

Emily scoffed. "Okay. Tell me. Why did you lie to me about Charlotte?"

Alison bit her lip. "It's complicated, Em."

Emily forcefully laughed. "Not like I haven't heard that one before."

"Elliot told me he thought it would be best to send Charlotte's body off to the crime lab for them to keep. I lied because I know you hate Elliot. I know you hate that I would confide in him first and not you. He's been working with the police all along. He's the one who suspected you of insanity. He told Tanner to have somebody close to you question you, because usually people open up to the people they care about over the authorities," Alison said quietly.

Emily's eyes narrowed. "You're joking."

"I'm not," Alison said.

Emily scoffed and bowed her head. "This entire time, he's been behind this.  And you let him?"

Alison shook her head furiously. "Of course I didn't! I fought against him! I even insisted having Charlotte given back to me. But once I signed the contracts, it was already out of my hands. When I found out he was throwing you in the line of fire, I freaked. He's tried to speak to me, but I haven't spoken to him since."

Emily's eyes softened as she reached out and grabbed Alison's soft hands in hers. "Why couldn't you tell me this at the Brew? Or any time?"

Alison wouldn't meet her eyes. "There's one thing I've learned about Rosewood. And that's not to trust your surroundings. Ever."

Emily sighed and pulled Alison to the couch so she could hold her in her lap.

"What's wrong?" Alison asked.

Emily's eyebrows furrowed. "There's somebody after us, Ali. All of us. I think it's the same person who killed Charlotte."

Alison's face drained of color. "Why would you say that?"

Emily rubbed small patterns into the blonde's hands. "It's a super long story. But we went to the dollhouse tonight. The entire group, and I. That's where I've been. But there was a message on the wall. They expected us to track them there. It said _You're too lAte. I'm coming for you now."_

Alison stayed silent against Emily's chest, the only sounds to be heard were their coinciding heartbeats.

"I'm going to protect you. I won't let him hurt you, I promise," Emily whispered.

Alison leaned forward and looked into Emily's eyes. "I love you. Okay? I do."

Alison's lips pressed against Emily's making her mind spin.

Emily felt her hands rushing through Alison's soft long blonde hair. She kissed down the blonde's jawline and sucked on her sweet spot. It had been too long.

Alison let out a slight moan. "I missed you." 

Emily kissed her lips again, occasionally allowing her tongue to cross over into Alison's mouth.

"I missed you too," Emily said against Alison's heart shaped lips.

Alison stood up and kissed Emily's forehead. "I'm exhausted. We need some sleep."

Emily stood up and followed Alison to the doorframe like she did every night. Alison looked into her eyes and kissed her passionately, not minding Emily's wandering hands.

"Goodnight, I love you," Emily said once she had pulled away.

Alison smiled. "I love you more." She turned to go into the bedroom and looked back once she realized Emily was still standing in the same spot.

"What are you standing there for?"

"I-I kind of expected you to slam the door in my face like every night."

Alison giggled. It made Emily's insides churn at how cute it was.

Alison reached out and grabbed Emily's hand. The feeling of her palms against Emily's drove Emily crazy.

Alison kissed her again before pulling her into the bedroom.

She locked the door behind them.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry I have such horrible tendencies to update. My grandmother passed away and things have been tough. Not to mention I'm exhausted constantly and have been watching the news like my life depends on it.
> 
> It's not an addiction, it just... gives me a rush occasionally. 
> 
> See y'all (hopefully haha) Thursday!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Drinking games for whenever I update late!

Emily woke up the next morning with a beautiful blonde in her arms. She had felt Alison tracing patterns into her skin, her mind somewhat going blank at the sensation.

"Good Morning Beautiful," Emily whispered.

Alison smiled. "And I NEVER thought you were gonna wake up."

"Hey, I've been sleeping on a couch for the past month. Being in an actual bed feels like heaven. I deserve to sleep in. And it's Saturday," Emily defended.

Alison turned over and crawled onto Emily's legs so that she could straddle her. "I'm kind of hungry," she said nonchalantly.

Emily raised her eyebrows. "Kinda early don't you think?"

Alison's face flushed a deep red before she smacked Emily's shoulder. "NOT like that. I'm actually hungry. For some real food."

"Why are you sitting on me?"

"Because I'm hoping it'll get you up so you can make me breakfast."

"It's really only turning me on."

Alison smacked her again and laughed. "You're such a perv."

Emily groaned. "Okay, fine, fine. What do you want?"

"Surprise me?" Alison asked.

Emily laughed. "Okay. But don't expect a gourmet meal. You know I can't cook."

Alison jumped off of Emily's lap and allowed Emily to get up, her eyes now wandering to Alison's body. She was wearing Emily's large t-shirt and nothing else.

Emily realized she was only in her sports bra and boxers. Alison caught sight of it too and smirked. "Well... It really is a 'Good Morning' to me."

"Would you rather I have a dick?" Emily asked, jokingly.

Alison shrugged. "I wouldn't mind you being intersex, honestly."

Emily blushed. This girl was going to kill her.

* * *

Alison watched Emily continue to flip pancakes, her eyes concentrating on the fluffy circles of dough.

"You're cute," Alison said.

Emily chuckled. "I love you too."

Alison slipped her hands around Emily's waist and played with the band on her boxers. "Wanna know something weird?"

Emily cocked an eyebrow. "Like what?"

Alison smirked. "Have you ever wondered what it would be like to cook naked? Because I have."

Emily almost choked on the pancake she had taken off the plate and began to eat.

Alison noticed Emily's silence and gently rubbed against Emily's privates through the front of her boxers.

Emily could feel the wetness and the heat beginning to pool in between her legs. "Mmm... Ali, you're making me want to eat more than just the pancakes."

"That's the point, dumbass."

"Damn. My ass isn't dumb."

"I'm horny and hungry. I'm basically the bear you don't want to poke," Alison joked.

Emily sighed. "Do you want to test your theory?"

Alison leaned her head against Emily's back, her fingers still playing along the rubber band of Emily's black boxers.

"Hmm?" She asked.

"Do you want to cook naked?"

"Can we have whipped cream?" Alison asked playfully.

Emily grinned. "Duh."

* * *

"Stop moving so much!" Alison laughed as she straddled Emily's naked body on the kitchen table. She attempted to take the can and spray a thin line of whipped cream down Emily's chest, stomach, and waist.

"It feels weird," Emily grumbled as she felt Alison's legs shift against her weak spot.

Emily groaned slightly which caused Alison to blush. "Sorry, Em."

"No, that felt really good."

"You're about to feel great in a sec," Alison giggled.

Emily stiffened. "Wait, what?"

"Oh, nothing," Alison hummed as she continued spraying the cool cream down Emily's front.

* * *

Emily's lower section was pressed against Alison's, causing the blonde underneath her to moan out in absolute pleasure.

"Fuck, Em... You feel so good," Alison whined.

Emily continued to grind against Alison until she felt the younger blonde release herself underneath her muscular tan body.

Alison gripped Emily's arm and scratched down her back. "F-fuck," Alison moaned.

Emily bent down and licked up Alison's juices, along with the smeared whip cream.

"So how was that?" Emily asked, jokingly, the sweet taste of the blonde on her tongue.

Alison sighed contentedly. "We should do that more often."

* * *

Emily rubbed Alison's back, their naked bodies pressed against each other next to the fireplace with only a blanket to cover them.

"We spent the entire day having sex," Alison giggled.

Emily shrugged. "I haven't been able to touch you in a million years. I kind of don't want to stop."

Emily leaned over and began kissing Alison's neck which caused a small moan to escape from the younger girl's lips.

"No, Em... I literally don't think I can have another orgasm," Alison laughed.

"Do you want to try?"

Alison kissed Emily's already swollen lips and rubbed her cheek. "I love you. But I'm throbbing so bad between my legs. If I have another orgasm, I might fall apart."

Emily groaned. "Fine, fine."

Alison climbed on top of her and straddled her waist. "That doesn't mean that I don't want to continue this."

She leaned down and began to slowly kiss Emily's lips again, her tongue slipping into Emily's mouth.

Emily's hands slipped down to Alison's ass and began kneading her cheeks with her fingers.

"Em... I love you," Alison whispered.

Emily grinned into Alison's mouth. "I love you more baby girl."

The Other Alison giggled in Emily's mind. " _And I love you too, Em."_

* * *

Emily felt as though she could slam her head onto her desk at work. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she hoped it would kill her.

The Other Alison in her head spoke to her continuously. Nowadays, it almost seemed as if it were nonstop.

Occasionally, The Other Alison would spout mystifying riddles but Emily was too tired and aggravated to listen to it or to write them down. It was bad enough she had pulled the first one out of her ass. How the hell was she supposed to explain the others?

On top of it all, rebuilding her relationship with the real Alison wasn't easy.

Emily told herself over and over again that it would all be fine and that Alison would be safe. But in the back of her mind, she was nervous. What if this person came for them?

Emily knew the person would. Eventually they would. They were just waiting for the right moment to strike. Emily didn't like feeling like the sitting duck. She was usually The Hunter.

Alison had also reacted poorly towards Emily keeping the rifle by her bedside.

"Babe, do we really need that in here?" Alison asked, eyeing it uncomfortably.

Emily hopped into bed and pulled the blonde against her chest. "Yes. I need to keep you safe."

"Are you absolutely sure somebody is going to try to get us? Maybe you guys misunderstood?"

"Ali... Of course I didn't. Spencer didn't either. And we all know Spencer. She doesn't usually make mistakes," Emily whispered.

Alison sighed. "Em... Everybody makes mistakes. They could've just been doing it to scare you."

"The police don't seem to think so," Emily said.

Emily couldn't see it, but Alison rolled her dim blue eyes.

Emily grit her teeth after a few minutes of harmless silence ensued. "It was stupid of you guys to anonymously call it in."

"Why do you say that?" Alison asked.

"Since when have the police ever been of actual help to us? There's always somebody who is corrupted. Somebody who is messing with us. That Rollins dude tried to peg me for murder!" Emily exclaimed.

"Emily... He was only doing his job," Alison said.

Emily sat up in bed and stared long and hard at the blonde who had now lifted her head from Emily's brawny chest. "You're defending him now? The guy who basically almost got me arrested?"

Alison pursed her lips. "I'm just saying... I don't agree with what he did. Believe me. I don't. But these are the people that are trying to find who killed Charlotte. I need to trust them."

Emily scoffed lightly. "So while we're on the topic of honesty, I wanted to let you know I stole Charlotte's medical file from the coroner's office."

Alison gasped. "You what?!"

"Whoops," Emily snapped.

"Why the fuck would you do that?" Alison hissed. Her tone reminded Emily of the old Alison. But Emily didn't flinch. She'd faced a lot worse than an angry Ali.

"Maybe because what I said is true. It's sloppy. It's incomplete. We wouldn't be able to really understand much until we saw her body. That's how I knew her body wasn't in the morgue. Nobody at the police station said anything. Aria, Spencer, Hanna and I broke into the office," Emily said nonchalantly.

"I cannot believe you!" Alison yelled.

"Well you better start trying to. Something is going on Alison. Something bigger than both you and me. Somebody is after us!" Emily yelled back.

The two of them sat in uncomfortable silence, glaring at the other as though they were poison.

Then the phone began to ring. Alison tensed, her eyes not leaving Emily's glare.

"Are you going to get that?" Emily snapped.

Alison sighed and reached over to the nightstand where her phone was chirping away.

She held it to her ear.

" _I'm coming for you,"_ the robotic voice said.

Her face went pale and Emily realized something was wrong. "Ali... What's going on?" She asked.

Alison cleared her throat, her voice wavering. "Who is this?"

No answer. She looked at the screen. The line was still alive.

Alison trembled and handed the phone to Emily who's eyebrows were knitted together so tightly it almost seemed as if she had a unibrow.

Emily held it to her ear. "Hello? Who is this?"

That's when the music began to play on the other end of the line. The voice was singing in what sounded like French.

Emily's eyes grew wide as she ended the call. "Alison... Is that music the only thing that played?"

"What music?" Alison asked, her eyes darting around the room and her expression terrified.

"What did they say to you?" Emily asked sternly.

"He said he was coming for me," Alison squeaked.

Emily's breath caught in her throat. "Get your things. We're leaving. We're going to The Radley for the night."

Alison didn't argue as she tore the covers off and began to pull each drawer out and pack what she could into her luggage.

Emily helped her. They didn't speak as they carefully began to lock up what they could. Emily's mind was shot. Whoever was messing with them was going to regret it.

They locked the door to the apartment and climbed into Emily's car before taking off down the road. Alison's eyes were full as she watched the apartment complex disappear from her line of sight.

Once they got to The Radley, they were met outside by Hanna and Caleb.

"What's going on?" Caleb demanded once Hanna had begun to help Ali unload the car.

"Whoever is trying to kill us is after Ali. We're not safe at home," Emily muttered.

"What do you mean he's after Ali?" Caleb asked.

"He called. Told her he was after her. Pretty self explanatory, don't you think?" Emily snapped.

"Do you still have the number? Maybe I can connect to an IP address," Caleb suggested but Emily shook her head.

"It was a burner. I tried calling it back. I only got a dead dial tone. Even if you could find where the call came from, whoever it was is far from there by now," Emily said.

Caleb scratched the back of his neck. "Please tell me you're working on something. Anything."

Emily grimaced. "Spencer and I have something that we're considering. We're not sure if it'll actually work. But the only way to catch a rat is to set up a trap."

"And is it a big enough trap to catch Uber -A?" Caleb asked nervously.

Emily sighed and squeezed the bridge of her nose. "I don't know. If it ends the way we hope for it to, there won't be much of Uber -A left to see. Ali won't like what I'll have to revert to."

"Like?" Caleb asked.

"The Hunter. If the plan works, I'm going to kill whoever is hunting us," Emily said stiffly.

Caleb's eyes grew wide but he didn't say anything.

"Do me a favor. Please don't tell Hanna. She won't like it either," Emily said.

Caleb nodded solemnly.

Alison and Hanna approached them, a weary look crossing Alison's expression.

"Where's Sparia?" Emily asked.

Hanna shook her head. "They're in their rooms. We didn't want to wake them. We think Aria and Ezra are having a sleepover."

Alison gave her a pointed look and began to walk towards the hotel without anyone next to her.

"Is she okay?" Hanna asked.

"She got a call from Uber -A. He's hunting her," Caleb said.

Hanna's bright blue eyes grew wide. "It's happening all over again, isn't it?"

Emily grimaced. "For their sake, I hope not."

* * *

Alison and Emily stood outside of Emily's room at The Radley. Alison's worn expression made it seem as if she wanted to throw herself from a building or sleep forever.

Emily pushed open the door and checked the entire room up and down to make sure nobody was hiding. Alison watched as she even got down onto the floor and checked for invisible passage ways and entrances.

She was glad her room didn't have a window. Nobody could get in. Nobody could get out.

Alison unpacked her luggage sluggishly and began to pull her sweatshirt on again so she could stand in her nightwear.

Emily came up behind her and pulled her into her chest in the large white bed. Alison was either still in a lot of shock, or she was just good at hiding her emotions.

Emily kissed the top of her head. "I'm going to keep you safe. I promised you that, remember?"

That's when Alison began to tremble.

Emily just held her tighter as the younger blonde began to sob uncontrollably into Emily's neck.

"I love you. It's okay. You're safe with me," Emily whispered.

Alison squeezed Emily's grey t-shirt. "W-why is this happening again?"

Emily let out a long breath. She didn't know. None of it made sense. Why now? What the hell was even happening?

"I don't know, Ali. I don't. I wish I did. But it'll be okay. You've got me. I'm not going to let anything bad happen to you. I promise. Pretty soon we're just going to be laughing about this," Emily said as she tried to cheer up the mood.

But nothing seemed to clear. Even after Alison fell asleep out of mere exhaustion, Emily couldn't help but keep awake and stare at the door.

She couldn't help but think that somebody in a black hoodie was standing just on the other side of it.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some domestic Emison for you, followed by some hella cool backstory. 
> 
> You didn’t think I’d give you guys TOO much fluff did you? 
> 
> *wink wink* 
> 
> Next (hopeful) update is on Friday.   
> If I can remember...


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just barely updating on time. But updating nonetheless! 
> 
> Enjoy!

Emily sat down on Spencer's hotel couch while Alison sat with Aria and Hanna in the separate room. Aria had agreed to distract Alison while Spencer, Emily, Toby, and Caleb planned. The less she knew, the better.

"You want to kill -A?" Toby asked, utterly shocked.

Emily grimaced. "Uber -A. And yes, I do. He's trying to kill us. We have no choice."

Toby scoffed. "Yes we do, Emily. There is always another choice. We should bring him to justice. You don't get to play the cops."

"Yeah, and a great help they've been!" Emily spat.

Toby went silent, his lips pressed together into a long, thin line.

Caleb cleared his throat. "She's got a point man. It's not ideal. None of us want to do it. But if you're being fired at, you're not just going to sit there and take it. You're going to fire back."

"Yeah, and what if Uber -A has a bomb? Not legitimately, but metaphorically you know what I mean," Toby said skeptically.

Spencer rolled her eyes. "Stop."

"Spence, you know -A is always one step ahead of us," Toby begged.

Spencer sighed and rubbed her forehead with her index finger and thumb. "This isn't -A. This is some freak who has homicidal tendencies. This person killed -A."

"That just makes them much more dangerous!" Toby insisted.

"Toby, I am going to take him out. You're not going to stop me. If you're going to play the cop, you can leave," Emily griped.

Toby shook his head for a second and stared at the ground before pulling his badge out of his pocket and placing it on the table. "Fine. I'll listen. No police business."

"Good," Emily said.

Spencer sighed. "We have to lead Uber -A back here. Somehow."

Caleb turned from his computer and grunted. "Well. I think I found where the burner phone was last used."

Emily narrowed her eyes and turned around to look over his shoulder. "Jackson Street? That's about a block away from Ali's apartment."

"He was that close?" Spencer asked, stupefied.

Emily grit her teeth. "Not very comforting, Spence."

"Sorry," Spencer apologized.

Caleb sighed. "That's about as much as I can get. I have an address. 1430 Jackson Street."

Emily stood up and grabbed her keys off of the table. "I'm going. Spencer, make sure Ali stays here. Don't let her know anything."

Spencer's eyes grew wide. "Are you serious? Emily, what the hell am I going to tell her? She will ask, you know she will."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Tell her I'm going out to get ice cream or something. I'll be back soon. She won't even know I'm gone."

"Where are you going?" A voice asked.

Emily turned around to see Alison standing against the wall of the hotel room, her dimples pitted deep in her cheeks as a worried expression overcame her face.

"Ali," Emily said slowly.

"Where are you going, Emily?" Alison asked again in a stern voice.

Emily sighed and looked Alison in the eyes gently. "I'm going to just go get us some ice cream."

Spencer's expression turned hard from behind Alison. Her glare cut like a knife.

Alison's gaze softened a bit. "Oh... Could I go with you?"

Emily grit her teeth. "Actually it's just going to be Spencer and I. I want you to stay here with Toby, Caleb, Hanna and Aria while we're gone. For safety."

Alison nodded, her mouth closed. She was unsure of what to say.

"Did I hear Ice Cream?!" Hanna shouted as she ran into the kitchen.

 _Fuck_ , The Other Alison hissed.

"Yeah, we're going to go get all of us some ice cream. We'll be back soon though," Spencer butt in as she realized the lie was only going to have to go further.

"Can I come?" Hanna asked excitedly.

 _Motherfucking Hanna_ , The Other Alison cursed. _Why can't Hefty do anything other than eat?_

Emily ignored the voice and smiled weakly so that her cover wouldn't be blown. "Yeah, sure Han."

Alison seemed a bit jealous and even a little miffed that Emily was allowing one blonde to go but not the other.

 _I'm sorry,_ Emily mouthed.

Alison just looked down at the ground.

"I call shotgun!" Hanna yelled as she ran out the hotel room's door and down the hallway to the elevator. 

Spencer groaned. "I better go make sure I can sit in the front. You coming, Em?"

Emily nodded. "Yeah, just give me a sec."

Caleb got the hint and pulled Toby into the other room of the suite, giving Emily and Alison privacy.

"Ali, please look at me."

Alison did so but her eyes were still slightly full of unresolved anger.

"I love you."

"Em-,"

"I love you," Emily said again. She reached forward and held Alison's face in her hands.

Alison tried her best to stay angry but felt herself melt at the feeling of Emily's warm touch.

Alison traced the outline of the tattooed waves in Emily's burned arms. "I love you too," she mumbled.

"I'm sorry. That wasn't loud enough. What did you say?" Emily asked again teasingly.

"I love you," Alison said a little louder.

"Nah, I'm still not able to fully hear you. Speak up!"

"I love you," Alison emphasized, laughing.

Emily pressed her lips to Alison's forehead. "You're my baby girl."

"Please be careful," Alison said worriedly.

Emily smirked. "I'll be back. You're just worried you won't get to ever touch my ass again."

Alison's face grew a bright red. She pushed Emily away from her, blushing and laughing furiously. "Just go. Make sure Hanna doesn't beat Spencer to the passenger seat. Oh, and I love you."

Emily winked. "Nobody loves you more than I do."

* * *

"Are we almost there yettttt?" Hanna asked, annoyed from the backseat.

"Han, we left two minutes ago. And we're going to put this lightly," Spencer said.

"We're not getting ice cream," Emily finished.

She sped past the ice cream parlor trying not to laugh.

Hanna looked out the window longingly. "No. No! Emily, go back! Seriously! I was actually looking forward to that! You bitch!"

"Dear God," Emily muttered.

Spencer swiveled around in her seat so she could face Hanna. "We're looking for Uber -A."

Hanna stopped complaining and stared at her. "Excuse me? Why would you lie about ice cream to look for that killing freak?"

Emily felt her muscles tense.

 _I'm a killing freak_ , Emily thought to herself.

"Because Ali couldn't know. You need to keep this secret, Hanna," Spencer said wearily.

"Wait a minute... She doesn't know?" Hanna asked.

"No. And I'd like it to stay that way," Emily said.

"Can I make a proposition?" Hanna asked.

"Wow, an eleven letter word, Han. That's a first," Spencer joked.

Emily laughed.

"No, seriously. Can I, bitch?" Hanna sneered.

Spencer threw her hands up in mock surrender and Hanna bounced up and down in the backseat excitedly.

"Okayokayokayokay, but you guys have to promise you'll agree to it."

"Okay," Emily and Spencer said together. They were sharing an amused look.

Hanna smiled. "After all this is over, you have to take me for ice cream."

* * *

Emily parked her old car alongside an old torn down house on Jackson Street. Her eyebrows knit together worriedly. She leaned over Spencer's lap in the passenger seat and clicked the console on the car's dashboard. It flipped open revealing a small black pistol.

Spencer raised an eyebrow as Emily pocketed it. Hanna sat stiffly in the backseat not daring to say a word with the fear that she might lose her ice cream privilages.

"Are you serious Emily?" Spencer asked.

Emily sighed. "As serious as a heart attack. My dad can testify for that."

Hanna burst out laughing and Spencer shot her a dirty look to shut her up.

"Sorry," Hanna apologized.

Emily just rolled her eyes. "It doesn't really matter, Spence. Dad would've laughed too."

Spencer sighed and turned towards Emily. "Please, don't do anything rash. We're here to find answers. Not kill on sight."

Emily grimaced. "Don't go all Toby on me. I'll do what I have to."

Spencer glared and turned back to look at Hanna who was now scrolling through her Instagram feed with her legs crossed on the console.

"Do you seriously agree with this?" Spencer demanded.

Hanna looked up from her screen lazily. "Hm? Oh, well... I kind of have to. If I don't, Emily probably won't get me ice cream."

"You're joking," Spencer scoffed. "Your life is more important than ice cream."

Hanna shrugged, her eyes now returning to the screen. "I used to believe that but... I have a feeling we're all going to die anyways."

"Hanna!" Emily and Spencer exclaimed.

"What?! You heard Uber -A. He's not playing around. He was pretty serious about coming to kill us," Hanna defended.

"You're just going to give in. Just like that?" Emily asked.

Hanna groaned. "I've already been through the whole -A thing once. I'm pretty fed up with it. I don't know if I can go through that amount of stress again. Jesus, I got locked in a dollhouse and hit by a car. I'm only 23 and I'm already developing grey hairs. You can't be doing that in the fashion industry. YOU JUST CAN'T!"

"Jeez, chill Han," Emily muttered.

Spencer couldn't help but agree. "She's got a point. But that doesn't necessarily mean you should give up. If you try to forfeit the game, you don't really get to walk away from it. Not alive anyways."

Emily made sure the gun was secure in her beltline before opening her door and stepping out of the car. Spencer and Hanna followed her lead.

"So, you and Ali... How have things been?" Hanna asked.

"You're seriously going to ask about relationships right now Hanna?" Spencer asked as they began walking towards the front of the old run down house.

"Well, I figured we might as well. We can search for clues and talk. Besides, Emily is cheating on me with Alison," Hanna said.

"Come on," Emily laughed.

"She's just nervous because she knows I'm better than Ali in bed," Hanna joked.

Spencer tried to hide her smile.

"Maybe that's why Uber -A is after Ali. Because he knows she's bad in bed and he wants to teach her how to please you, Em," Hanna continued.

By now, Emily was laughing so hard she couldn't see through her tears. Spencer was doing the exact same. This was what Emily missed. Emily missed endless Hanna jokes. For as long as she could remember, Hanna had always been there to say or do something that would lift her spirits. If only that could be the only worry in Emily's life.

She wished she could worry about being in a relationship like a normal person. If Charlotte hadn't been killed, maybe Emily would be focusing on her proposal to Alison.

Maybe.

The thought of getting married to her first love seemed almost surreal. She was almost certain Alison hadn't had those thoughts before.

It was too soon.

Was it though?

She had been in Rosewood for over five months now. She and Alison were living together. They'd known each other for almost ten years. Would Alison even possibly consider marriage  a viable option?

Besides the point, they were both still young. With the investigation happening, there's no way Alison was thinking of changing her last name to "Fields" and moving away from Rosewood. Not yet at least.

Emily knew over time if her and Alison remained together that the thought would eventually cross the young blonde's mind.

It was only a matter of time.

And resolution.

Emily snapped out of her thoughts as Spencer began lightly inspecting the rotting door.

"It's unlocked."

Hanna raised her eyebrows. "You want to go in there? Oh, hell no."

Emily narrowed her eyes. "Hanna, this is why we are here. You insisted on coming."

"Again, because I thouht we were coming for ice cream. Not this bullshit snooping thing we used to do as kids," Hanna objected again.

"It was literally only five years ago," Spencer said. "It wasn't that long ago."

Hanna rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I don't want to die. It really amazes me that you dumb bitches aren't dead yet."

Emily ignored Hanna and gripped the rusty doorknob, not minding the loud squeak as she pushed it open. Following the movement, dust floated down from the ceiling.

Old pieces of furniture within the house were covered in long billowing white tarps. The sight made Emily shift from one foot to the other uneasily.

Hanna followed Emily's gaze and scoffed. "Yeah, fuck no. I'll wait in the car."

"No, you won't," Spencer hissed.

"Em, please tell me I can wait in the car," Hanna pleaded.

Emily shook her head. "We aren't splitting up, Han. The last thing I need is for Uber -A to get you alone while you're defenseless."

Hanna groaned and clung to Spencer's free arm. The tall brunette's other hand held a long black metal flashlight.

"Hey, think of something else," Spencer said as she noticed the blonde's killer death grip on her limb.

Hanna sneered. "Okay, yeah that's totally possibly in Murder House."

Spencer rolled her eyes. "What's your favorite type of ice cream?"

Hanna's expressioned lightened up at the mention of the delectable dessert. She thought long and hard for a couple of minutes before smiling. "Definitely chocolate fudge brownie with white sprinkles. I mentioned the sprinkles beause I figured it would help jog Emily's memory."

By now they were in the main living room, searching the house for any type of clue possible. Emily's head perked up as she heard her name.

"What?" she asked, too focused on the white sheets covering the furniture to pay much attention.

"Sprinkles," Hanna repeated.

Emily looked at her confusedly.

"When we were seven we would go to Joe's and get ice cream with sprinkles. And I would always get the white ones because they were my favorite and you would always get the rainbow ones," Hanna said as though she had proved a point.

Emily still stared as though she had no idea what the blonde was trying to insinuate.

"Get it? Because you're gay? And that was before you even knew you were gay! It's like you had some type of promotion or something," Hanna laughed.

Emily shook her head, annoyed. "I got the rainbow ones because they were pretty. I didn't even know what it was like to actually like somebody like that back then, Hanna."

Spencer seemed confused. "I think you mean 'premonition,' Hanna. Not promotion."

Hanna shrugged. "Eh, I was close enough."

Emily turned her back on the ridiculous banter and saw one of the back doors slightly swinging open. "Guys," she said slowly.

Spencer noticed what she was looking at and clamped a hand over Hanna's mouth.

Emily inched forward, her gun raised high and her heartbeat drowning out the sound of her breathing.

She jumped through the doorway looking for any signs of life. All that sat in the middle was a tape recorder. Emily moved towards it warily, Spencer and Hanna close at her heels.

The brunette leaned down and clicked the 'PLAY' button.

Garbled sounds came over the speaker before the static sounds began to settle. The deep electronic voice that Emily recognized from the phone call Alison had gotten began to speak.

_"You all came together only to be split up._

_Down with the queen."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoyed! Next update is on Super Bowl Sunday. 
> 
> Fly Eagles, Fly!


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. I’m actually on time.
> 
> Happy Super Bowl day! 
> 
> #FlyEaglesFly

Emily could feel her pulse quicken as she shot towards the tape recorder and threw it against the wall angrily.

"Emily!" Spencer yelled.

Hanna stepped forwards and gripped Emily's large tattooed bicep. "Em, please," she begged.

Emily looked down at what was left of the tape, her chest heaving from heavy breathing.

She couldn't help but see Hanna's large, scared blue eyes peeking up at her from underneath her lashes. There was no way this was happening to her. She hadn't lost control of her anger since she was in Afghanistan.

Spencer moved quick enough so that she could retrieve the recording device before Emily could attempt to smash it again.

"You need to calm down, Em," Spencer said.

"That fucking asshole threatened Alison!" Emily growled.

Hanna rubbed her shoulder in circular motions. Emily could feel her fingers caressing even the deepest tissue.

It calmed Emily down enough to speak without losing it all again.

"But it may have clues. Anything that could help us, right?" Spencer asked.

Emily's mind seemed to slow. "Right."

Hanna kissed Emily's cheek and laced her fingers through the brunette's. "Don't worry, Em. We're not going to let anything happen to Ali."

Emily smiled softly. It was painful, but genuine. She couldn't believe how lucky she was to still have the girls even after ignoring them for basically five years.

"Let's just get out of here. I don't want to be here in case you know who shows up," Spencer muttered as she stuffed the recorder into her jacket.

* * *

The ice cream parlor was full of people which made Emily uncomfortable. She waited outside for Spencer and Hanna to grab their cones and the cups of ice cream they bought for the others.

Emily recognized Alison's favorite being made inside the store. Simple chocolate and vanilla swirl with crushed Oreos.

That's what the world should be like. A chocolate and vanilla swirl with crushed Oreos. The Oreos being the circles of opportunities and the swirl the mixture of love and ideas.

But sadly the world was more like Rocky Road. Too many obstacles. Too many annoying things. Too many things you don't like - like the crushed walnuts that everybody secretly avoids.

"Emily? I'm surprised to see you here," a deeper voice said.

Emily turned towards the sound and noticed Elliot standing up straight with his hands in his pockets. He was wearing a casual button down shirt and khakis. It was very different than what Emily was used to seeing him in.

She gave him a quick once over before plastering a fake grin to her face. Oh, how she wanted to punch the shit out of him.

"Yeah, well, Spencer and Hanna dragged me," Emily said back.

Elliot grinned. "Ah, the other girls. Is Alison here?"

Emily's smile faltered. "No. She's at home. It looks like it's about to rain. I didn't want her to get sick."

Elliot looked up towards the sky which was brimming with dark black clouds. He nodded. "I see. You're probably more right than I would've been. At least, you know Alison better than I do."

Emily could feel a sneer beginning to form on her lips. She looked towards the ground to keep it from making itself known.

She caught herself staring towards the ice cream parlor, secretly wishing Hanna and Spencer would hurry up so they could leave.

Any more time with Elliot and Emily would beat him into the pavement.

When she noticed her friends weren't speeding up their process, she turned back to the tall raven haired man.

"So... I didn't expect you to be here either. Any particular reason?" Emily asked.

Elliot shrugged and tried his best to stay distanced from the tattooed veteran in front of him. "I'm just meeting somebody."

"That's cool," Emily muttered.

No it wasn't. She didn't really give a damn.

"I know I'm not your doctor right now, or ever, but I wanted to ask how you were feeling?" Elliot said in his most sincere tone.

Emily narrowed her eyes. "And why would you ask that?"

Elliot's expression didn't seem to shift. "Just mere curiosity. I mean, after the hospital and your psychotic break, I assumed you would be a little more-,"

"Crazy?" Emily scoffed.

Elliot raised his eyebrows. "No. Not crazy. Sensitive. Vulnerable."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Yeah, that's me alright. Miss Vulnerable."

Elliot chuckled. "You seem to be doing well."

Emily bit on her tongue. "I guess I'm doing as well as I could."

Elliot seemed to want to say more, but as he opened his mouth, his phone went off.

He pulled it out of his pocket and read what was on the screen before stuffing it away and clearing his throat.

"Excuse me. That was the person I am meeting. But, it was nice talking to you. I'm glad to see you're feeling better," Elliot said kindly.

Emily felt her heartbeat slow. She had been quite unfair with him in the past. She sighed.

"Thank you. But hey... Elliot? Could I ask a question? It's kind of personal," Emily said.

He squinted and turned back around to face her but didn't say anything which directed her to proceed with her question. He seemed uneasy.

He most certainly wasn't used to patients asking personal requests of their doctors.

"Did you know Charlotte well?" Emily asked.

Elliot sucked in a breath and sighed deeply. "I knew her well enough as my patient. I can't imagine anybody who would actually want to hurt her."

Emily was confused. "Why do you say that?"

Elliot looked both ways before lowering his voice and staring Emily straight in the eyes. "Because Charlotte was different. She became loving and caring. She only ever wanted what was best for Alison. She loved her sister."

"And if Ali was threatened?" Emily asked wearily.

Elliot squeezed his eyes shut. "Charlotte and I were working extensively on her... Issues. Her anger issues to be precise. She never wanted anybody to hurt Alison. Ever. But..."

"If somebody did?" Emily pressed.

Elliot sighed. "Charlotte used to threaten that she'd kill anybody who tried to hurt Alison. Or steal her away from her. Towards the end of Charlotte's life, Alison wasn't visiting much. She skipped a lot of days. It was really bothering Charlotte."

"Was there a reason why?" Emily asked.

Rollins shrugged, his face contorted with confusion and discomfort. "In my professional opinion, I think Alison was finally realizing how left behind she really was. How alone she really was. After all of you moved away, she spent five years alone taking care of Charlotte. It probably began to weigh on her. That's when she started talking about you. Eddie Lamb, one of the nurses at the sanitarium told me about Alison not having the best contact with you guys. And knowing Charlotte, she could read Alison pretty well. I tried to go back through my notes. But now they just collect dust in my desk. Charlotte is dead now. There's really no reason to continue to ponder."

Emily could see in his eyes that he didn't wish to speak of it any longer. In fact, the subject seemed to tire him out.

Emily stepped back and smiled slightly. "Thank you. For telling me that."

"Anytime," Elliot said.

Inside, Hanna and Spencer had grabbed the tray and were beginning to make their way outside with an assortment of dairy treats.

Rollins looked around and nodded towards the bar next to the ice cream parlor. "I better get going. It was nice seeing you, Emily."

Emily nodded as he walked away, her jaw clenched tight.

Hanna walked up behind her with her spoon in her mouth. "We got you vanilla with rainbow sprinkles because we know how much you like them vanilla girls," she joked with the plastic in between her teeth.

Emily rolled her eyes and took her ice cream cup from the large cardboard tray.

She watched Elliot enter the busy bar, her eyes never leaving his dark hair.

Emily looked towards Spencer who was beginning to eat her raspberry sorbet. "Hey, Spence. You've still got that master lock picking kit, yeah?"

Spencer raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

Emily smiled and took a bite of her ice cream.

"Good. Because we have a doctor's office to break into."

* * *

Spencer wasn't too keen on the idea of breaking into Dr. Rollins' office to look for old session notes of Charlotte's, but she agreed.

On the drive home, Hanna sat in the backseat and screamed the lyrics to "Dangerous Woman" by Ariana Grande while stopping to occasionally eat ice cream.

"Don't get anything on the seats," Emily warned.

Hanna scoffed. "I won't."

The next couple minutes of the drive however, were silent. Emily focused on her plan to find Uber -A and keep him away from Alison.

But what if Charlotte knew Uber -A? Somebody wanted her dead. Maybe Charlotte had said something to Elliott during their sessions?

Spencer cleared her throat. "Em, you're gripping the steering wheel a little too hard."

 _I'm still here baby, don't forget me_ , The Other Alison whispered.

Emily looked down at her throbbing white hands and grimaced. She couldn't help but imagine them around Uber -A's neck.

* * *

After all their friends had finished their ice cream and left, Alison sprawled out across the couch and watched TV. Her expression was still and calm.

Emily plopped down next to her and rubbed the younger blonde's thigh. "Als, can we talk?"

Alison blinked in worry and muted the television. "Yeah, of course Em."

Emily tried her best to smile. "You haven't received any other threatening phone calls or texts, right?"

Alison shook her head and looked down at Emily's hand stroking her leg. She covered it with her own.

Emily followed her gaze and sighed. "I'm so worried all the time. I know you were upset with me for not letting you out with me. But I just can't let Uber -A get to you. I won't."

Alison smiled lightly. "I know you won't. That's why I love you. But can   
we... Can we not talk about that bitch for just an hour?"

Emily's expression formed confusion. "Okay."

Alison stood up and ran a hand through her hair. "I have to take a shower."

She walked towards the bathroom and stopped in the doorway to look back towards Emily who was still sitting back, looking awfully confused.

"Em?"

"Yeah?"

"Since you're being all protective and shit... I don't really feel safe showering alone."

Emily stood up off the couch and gripped the blonde in her arms. She began to kiss Alison's soft neck, her tongue slowly tasting her skin.

Beneath her, she could hear Alison moan in pleasure before the blonde pulled Emily's lips up to her's so that they could connect in a love thirsty frenzy.

Alison pulled away and smiled up at Emily before gripping the brunette's scarred hand and leading her into the bathroom.

Emily pushed Alison against the sink and began to kiss her roughly, a guttural growl escaping her lips.

"It hasn't been that long," Alison laughed between endless kisses.

Emily chuckled. "No, it just feels like it's been a million years. I miss it."

"Oh, really? And what do you miss the most?" Alison asked huskily.

Emily tore her shirt off and helped Alison out of her own. She felt around Alison's back so that she could unclamp her black lace bra and attacked the blonde's breasts.

Alison pushed Emily's head down further as the brunette lightly nipped at the blonde's hardened buds.

Somehow the two managed to strip completely of their clothing, Alison's legs wrapped around Emily's waist and her arms around the brunette's neck in the shower. Each of their mouths fought for dominance.

The hot water streamed down from the faucet onto Emily's heavily muscled back as she pushed Alison up against the shower wall, her lips keeping contact with the blonde's.

Without much thinking needed, Emily reached down and lightly began to rub Alison's clit. Despite the water in the shower, Emily loved how wet Alison had gotten in excitement.

It was all for her.

Emily touched her fingers to Alison's slit which caused Alison to inhale sharply. "Oh yeah baby... Please..."

Slowly, Emily slid her fingers into Alison, Alison's walls tightening around Emily's fingers. She cried out in pure ecstasy.

"Oh god... Oh fuck... Emily it feels so good... Please baby," Alison begged.

Emily could feel how bad Alison's body wanted it. She could only imagine what was going on inside of her head.

Emily smirked and began to pump in and out of Alison's silky slit, her mind only focused on helping the blonde achieve the most mind blowing orgasm.

Alison bit on Emily's earlobe. The feeling of Emily's fingers moving quickly in and out of her caused her walls to tighten with each pump.

"You like that baby?" Emily asked, her voice almost animalistic.

"Hmmm," Alison hummed. Boy, did she like it. She liked it more than like.

Inside of her lower stomach, Alison could feel the high beginning to build. She wanted so desperately for Emily to blow her to pieces.

Emily continued to push her fingers deeper inside of the blonde, Alison's sweet yet salty juices running down her fingers and into her palm.

"Oh god... Em... I'm going to c-come," Alison panted.

"Please do... I want to taste you," Emily whispered against Alison's neck.

The heat from Emily's breath and the sound of her tone was enough to send Alison over the edge.

She moaned as she began to come all over Emily's fingers. The hot white substance began to roll down Emily's forearm.

Emily pulled her fingers out of Alison who had gone completely limp from her high and was now sitting on the ground of the shower.

She leaned against the wall so that the spray from the nozzle could cover her feet, her chest rising and falling unevenly.

Emily bent down next to her and lifted Alison's chin with her clean hand. Emily made sure Alison was looking into her eyes before she cleaned her fingers with her tongue.

Alison watched seductively as Emily tasted her fingers. It was sweet and salty. The taste was distinctly Alison. It was her favorite taste in the world.

Emily smiled to herself proudly. She kissed Alison's lips. "Oh, baby girl. You taste so good."

Alison loved the taste of Emily and herself in her mouth. It was so delectable, so benevolent.

"Ali," Emily whispered.

Alison could barely hear it over the roar  of the shower yet she lazily looked up  into the brunette's eyes.

Emily grinned and showed the blonde her fingers. "Taste yourself," she commanded.

Alison's eyes never left Emily's as she smirked and grabbed the brunette's fingers. She put them in her mouth, doing her best to lick them clean and suck on them for extra effect.

Emily felt as though she were melting. She didn't break eye contact with Alison as she let the blonde continue to fondle her fingers in her mouth.

Alison sucked on Emily's middle finger, eventually letting it slide out of her mouth with an audible pop.

Emily helped Alison up and held her against her body, her mind completely and utterly controlled by the blonde.

"That was very much needed," Alison giggled.

Emily blushed. She adored the sound of that giggle. Even in high school, it had been the one thing she obsessed over.

Alison reached behind her so that she could squeeze Emily's ass. "Still firm."

Emily laughed. This was absolutely perfect. Why couldn't things just be like this all the time? Why did Uber -A have to matter? Why did anything have to matter?

Nothing else should've mattered but her and Alison Dilaurentis.

 _Oh honey... Alison Dilaurentis Fields sounds SO much better,_ The Other Alison cooed.

Emily smiled to herself. For once in a long time, she actually agreed with the voice in her head.

* * *

Alison listened to Emily's slow heartbeat. It was perfect. It was delicate. It was Emily. It was Emily before the convoy accident. It was her Emily from high school.

"Emily... Are you asleep?" Alison asked.

"No," she heard Emily mutter sleepily.

They were laying in the hotel bed completely naked. The only thing that mattered was the feeling of skin against skin.

Alison wanted to bring up what would happen once Charlotte's killer was found.

What would they do?

Would they move away?

Would they get married?

Alison often found her mind wandering to marriage. Was it possible to want something so bad?

Was it too soon? Her and Emily hadn't even really been together for a full year yet. They needed time to regain a relationship when they weren't under investigation or being hunted by crazy murderers.

She doubted Emily wanted marriage. Not with the constant PTSD and depression.

Yet it never kept Alison from dreaming of standing on the alter next to Emily in a glorious black and white tux.

The thought made Alison all kinds of happy.

She returned her attention to Emily and kissed Emily's chest right where her heart would be.

"I love you," Alison whispered.

She heard Emily hum within her chest and felt the brunette's large scarred hand run through Alison's hair.

"I love you more. You're all mine. I'm never going to let anything happen to you," Emily retorted.

Alison smiled. "That's a promise you better keep, soldier."

Emily laughed. "Cross my heart and hope to die, Ms. Dilaurentis.” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next update - Tuesday. 
> 
> Be there peeps. It’s gonna get good.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry. I genuinely forgot that I even had an account on this website and I had to continue updating. I apologize, and will try my best to keep up-to-date with all of the updates that I promised you. 
> 
> Enjoy.

"Hanna, please tell me you didn't really eat the lobby bath soaps," Spencer groaned.

From behind them, Hanna rolled her eyes. "Of course not. I only _licked_ one of them."

Emily couldn't keep herself from laughing. It was almost too nice not to have to worry about anything.

Except that Charlotte's killer was still around.

And of course, Spencer had her hands wrapped around Dr. Rollins' office door Master lock with a pick in the other.

"Any luck?" Emily asked.

Hanna leaned up against the wall and studied her nails, her mind completely elsewhere.

Now that she was in on the secret of trying to hunt down Charlotte's killer, she insisted on staying in on it. The majority of the time, however, Emily and Spencer did all the work while Hanna sat around and waited for them to finish snooping.

The lock clicked in place and Spencer smiled to herself. "Got it."

She pulled it off the door as from behind her, Emily pushed it open. All of the lights were off, everything in Elliot's office neat and tidy.

Emily flicked the lights on and pulled Hanna in before shutting it quickly behind her. "Thank God it's Sunday and there's nobody here. Let's just take pictures of the notes and get out of here."

"Yeah, I agree. Where did you say they were again?" Spencer asked.

"They're in Elliot's desk," Emily directed.

Hanna leisurely strolled deeper into the room and laid down on the mini couch. "Please, Doctor Fields, could you help me with my problems?"

Emily rolled her eyes. "Seriously Hanna. We don't have time for this."

Hanna shrugged. "We kinda do."

Spencer tugged on the desk drawer and began ruffling through multiple stacks of papers, her mind completely focused on the task at hand.

"I found them," Spencer said.

"Great," Emily breathed.

"And by them, I mean all of them. All five thousand of them."

Emily narrowed her eyes and rounded the desk to stand next to the other brunette. "That's more medical paperwork than I've ever seen in my life. What, was he writing a book on her?"

"It wouldn't be the first time somebody we know has done that," Hanna piped up from her place on the couch.

"Elliot isn't Ezra," Emily said.

"Whatever the case, this is a lot of record, Emily. I don't know if I can photograph all of this in the allotted time we have," Spencer groaned.

"Well, you're going to have to. We need it and we can't just take it. Elliot is working with the cops. As soon as he notices it's missing, he'll be after me first," Emily shot back.

"Fine. I'll work fast."

Spencer took out her phone and began organizing the papers out chronologically on Dr. Rollins' desk.

Emily crossed the room so she could sit with Hanna, her brow furrowed.

She couldn't stop thinking about Aria being out with Alison right now. Were they safe? Were they able to shop without necessarily being stalked by Uber -A?

Even though it was only a ruse so that Alison would be distracted from Emily, she knew Aria truly did want some bonding time with Alison. Since they split up and became closer over the past five years, she felt it was necessary.

Emily on the other hand, didn't like Alison being anywhere she wasn't while Uber -A was hunting her. It made her uneasy. She trusted Aria with Alison 100%. But not only was Alison vulnerable, but so was Emily herself.

"Isn't it kind of weird?" Hanna asked suddenly.

Emily's head snapped up and pushed her out of her deep thoughts. "What is?"

"You basically came back to Rosewood and took Ali right out of Elliot's hands. She was dating him, Em. Then you magically show up and boom! EMISON." Hanna spread her hands to signify fireworks.

"Hann-,"

"And ew! How many times do you think they did it on this couch?" Hanna squealed as she rolled off of the black sofa and onto the floor.

Emily rolled her eyes. "You're a child."

Hanna glared at her. "You just don't want to admit it. Ali was riding dick before she was riding you again."

"First thing's first. Ali and I had never had sex before. There was no again. We didn't have sex for the first time until she had already left Elliot,-"

"-For you,"

"-Secondly, she wasn't doing anything with Rollins."

"And you know that, how?" Hanna asked.

Emily shrugged. "Ali would've told me."

"That's another funny thing. You and Ali just kind of jumped back into things. Literally jumped. Each other. Have you two actually gone on a date or tried to catch up after five years of you ignoring her existence?" Hanna asked.

Emily froze. As much as she hated to admit it, she hadn't tried to. Neither had Ali. They had assumed their respected positions.

They had merely picked up where they left off.

Truth be told, Alison had never mentioned to Emily anything of her relationship with Rollins. Emily had easily assumed that because of how simple it was to leave him, nothing truly serious could've been going on between the two.

Now that she thought of it, after almost eight months of dating, however, she wasn't so sure.

Growing up, Alison had fooled around with many guys. Sex was never an issue for her.

She hadn't spoken of those times. Especially not with Emily.

Who's to say Elliot was any different?

Emily didn't want to know.

"Okay, but see-," Emily started.

"No way," Hanna gaped.

"Um... I didn't say anyth-,"

"You're thinking of asking Ali to marry you!" Hanna shrieked.

"What?!" Spencer called from Elliot's desk.

"How the hell would you even know that?" Emily questioned.

Hanna shrugged. "I didn't. But you just confirmed it."

Emily blushed. "Fuck off."

"So it's true?" Hanna asked.

"Even if it was, it wouldn't happen for a very long time. Like you said. Ali and I haven't even caught up after five years of me ignoring her."

Hanna smiled. "Okay. So make it up to her. Take her on a couple of dates. You guys can always make up those five years you missed with fifty years of marriage."

Emily squeezed the bridge of her nose. "We're in the middle of a murder investigation. And we're hunting the person who killed the girl who tortured us, and you want me to take Alison out on dates?"

"Yeah, why not?" Hanna asked.

"Okay, I got them all," Spencer said as she tied the notes back up and shoved them into the desk.

She strolled into the abdomen of Rollins' office to meet Hanna and Emily who were sitting across from one another.

"Deep session?" Spencer asked.

"Quite," Hanna said with a mischievous grin.

"So, it's true? You want to marry Ali?" Spencer asked.

Emily groaned. "I was counting on you not hearing that."

"Oh, but I did," Spencer grinned.

Emily rolled her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time in the past thirty minutes of them being there. "We can talk about this more over lunch. Let's get out of here."

_Marriage. That sounds kind of nice. Don't you think, Em?_

_* * *_

The waiter dropped a couple of sandwiches off in front of Emily, Hanna, and Spencer at The Brew.

Hanna sucked down her coke immediately while the other two brunettes began sifting through the countless pictures on Spencer's phone screen.

"Elliot diagnosed Charlotte with severe anger issues. Most of these sessions weren't pretty. He wasn't kidding around when he told you she harbored intense feelings for Ali, Em," Spencer deducted.

"Like romance feelings?" Hanna cringed.

"No, Hanna. They were sisters. It was a protective feeling. Almost complete and utter hostility all for one person. It actually really closely resembles the behavior of a primate," Spencer said.

"But Charlotte was always like that, wasn't she? That's why she began to torture us. Of course the game originally began with Mona and Ali, but Charlotte took it from Mona and kept playing against us when she believed we weren't being good friends to Alison," Emily said.

"Yeah, well, Charlotte was never really one for truly trying to figure things out. She just did what she wanted," Hanna said.

Spencer became quiet as she tugged at her lip silently between her teeth. Her eyes were focused on her phone in front of her, her fingers moving the pictures back and forth.

"There's a pattern. Elliot said Charlotte's hostility really began to show itself in her final days. When he told you she was really angry because Ali seemed distracted, she wasn't angry with Ali. She was angry with _you_ , Emily," Spencer said.

The girls sat in quiet for a few minutes, the loud talking and chattering of The Brew surrounding them.

"Me?" Emily asked uneasily.

"It says here, clear as day, ' _Charlotte speaks of intense anger against a girl named Emily Fields. Alison talks of her a lot more. It began quite slow, where she'd occasionally slip into conversations, but now this girl harbors every topic. Unsure of Charlotte's intentions. Anger, jealousy, confusion? Alison's connections to Emily Fields? All signs indicate jealousy. Charlotte continues to say that the knight cannot come back for her queen. Research shows Emily Fields is a soldier. Currently stationed in California. Alison Dilaurentis is the queen? But what of the connections??? Alison and Emily grew up as best friends. Charlotte continuously complains now of Alison's hidden feelings for Emily Fields. Charlotte says Alison denies any feeling of affection for Emily Fields. There is no known source of communication between the two any longer, yet Charlotte is uneasy. I fear for what may happen if Charlotte is released from Sanitarium.'"_

Emily and Hanna sat in queasy silence as Spencer read aloud Elliot's untidy scrawl.

"He was afraid," Spencer said. "He was afraid of what Charlotte would do to you once she got out. She was almost cleared, Emily. Charlotte wasn't angry with Alison. She was angry with you. She was scared you were going to come back and steal Ali from her."

"But that doesn't make sense. That's literally crazy. When Charlotte was alive, Ali and I weren't even speaking yet," Emily said.

"And how long did you really think that would've lasted, Emily? Ali had called me just before then. She missed you. And you had written me that letter. Clearly you missed her too. How long would it have been before one of you called the other up?" Hanna interrupted.

"I don't usually agree with Hanna, but Hanna is right," Spencer said.

Hanna sat back and smiled to herself at the taller brunette's words.

"Okay, so still... It doesn't make sense. What does this mean? That Charlotte wanted to kill me, and somebody killed Charlotte?" Emily said.

Spencer shook her head wearily. "I don't know. I don't know what it means, Emily. I just know it isn't good. Elliot had these session papers. This is compiled evidence against you. And yet he didn't go to the police. He didn't show them these. Or else, they would've been all over you. He's protecting you."

"Why?" Emily asked, exasperated.

"I don't know!" Spencer exclaimed angrily.

"Take it down a notch, Spencer. Maybe we're just forgetting something," Emily said.

"No, Emily we aren't! Maybe we are forgetting something and that something is that Charlotte was a little crazy!" Spencer spat.

"You're lost," Emily realized.

"Not lost. More like completely and utterly confused. This is hopeless. Dead ends lead to more dead ends. For all I know, Charlotte's ghost is haunting us," Spencer rolled her eyes.

Emily ran a hand through her hair. "Well... If I know anything at all, it's this. Elliot protected me. I need to speak to him. He must've realized Charlotte was off of her rocker. He had to clear her to get her released, right? Well... What if he didn't clear her?"

"You think Rollins kept Charlotte in the Sanitarium?" Spencer asked.

"I think he tried to. That doesn't mean that Charlotte didn't get out. Mona could easily get in and out of Radley. I'm sure Charlotte found her way with Brookhaven too," Emily said.

"I definitely think you should speak to Elliot. If anybody was closest to Charlotte, besides Ali, it was him," Spencer said to Emily.

"So... The killer could be...?" Hanna asked, completely confused.

Spencer leaned back. "What if the killer is another Mona?"

"Excuse me?" Emily asked.

"Mona originally started the -A game. She taught Charlotte all about it. After Charlotte took over the game, Mona continued to play. What if there's another Mona?" Spencer asked again.

"You mean... You think another patient killed Charlotte?" Emily questioned.

"I think it's entirely plausible, yes. Also, when you talk to Elliot, bring it up. He spent the most time in Brookhaven out of all of us. If any patients went missing, he would know," Spencer said excitedly.

Emily rubbed her forehead. "I'll speak with him. I have a feeling he knows more than he lets on."

"That actually makes sense. If another patient did it, they could've easily done what Mona did. Snuck out of Brookhaven, killed Charlotte, and taken on the identity of Uber -A. Charlotte taught them the game. They're," Spencer stopped.

"What?" Hanna asked nervously.

"There was one difference between Charlotte and this person. Charlotte killed, yes. And Charlotte would always hurt people. But never in a million years would she ever wish to hurt Ali. This person won't stop."

She looked up at Emily and Hanna worriedly.

"They won't stop until we're all dead."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keep your eyes on Sunday. That’s when I hope to plan for the next update. 
> 
> See you then!


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so Sunday turned into Wednesday. I tried. 
> 
> Enjoy.

After Spencer and Hanna had dropped her off at her room in The Radley, Emily picked up her phone and after looking up the number, called Dr. Rollins' office.

" _This is the desk of Dr. Elliot Rollins. How may I help you?_ " A female voice asked.

Emily sucked in a breath. "I'm calling to talk to Dr. Rollins. Is he available?"

" _Are you a patient or somebody in need of a consult_?"

"Neither. I'm kind of a friend."

" _May I have your name so that I may tell him you called_?"

"Emily. I mean, it's Emily Fields."

" _One moment please_."

The line went dead for a few seconds leaving only air. Emily thought for a few seconds of hanging up.

Maybe calling him and getting him involved wasn't the best idea. It was rude. After all, he was only Charlotte's doctor and unbeknownst to him, they had just gotten finished breaking into his office.

" _Hey there Emily_ ," Rollins' voice rang into her ear.

"H-Hi," Emily breathed, startled by his sudden greeting.

" _How can I help you?_ " Elliot asked.

"I was wondering if you would be willing to talk about Charlotte. I know, patient confidentiality and all, but... I feel that I owe it to Ali to get to know her sister. Her real sister. Not... Not   
-A," Emily lied.

Emily could feel Rollins on the other end contemplating his offer.

" _Sure. Anything for Alison. And for you of course. How about tomorrow night? We'll grab a pint_ ," Elliot said hopefully.

Emily smiled softly. "Thank you so much. It means a lot to me."

" _Anytime. How is Ali_?" Elliot asked.

Emily's smile faltered. She couldn't help but feel slightly guilty that this man still cared about Alison even after Alison practically threw him away. She threw him away for somebody who ignored her for over five years.

"She's doing great, Elliot. In fact, she should probably be walking through the door any second for us to start cooking dinner. But tomorrow night sounds great. Can't wait," Emily said.

Emily could sense the disappointment through the phone and couldn't help but hang up before he even got a chance to fully say goodbye.

She walked into the kitchen and turned on the stove and began to silently set up the table.

Emily pulled out one of the kitchen chairs and sat down, rubbing up and down her tattooed arm before her fingers brushed against the bullet. She was missing war. There was no mystery to it. War was more pure than -A's incessant games.

She couldn't help but think of Sophia or Twig, or even Jackson. What would they have thought of the situation?

 _Em, you're a soldier. Not a detective. This isn't going to be easy for that exact reason_ , The Other Alison tried to reason.

But even that, wasn't enough to change Emily's mind.

The hotel door opened and closed as the familiar sound of Alison's shoes being tossed next to the wall in the front sounded.

Emily's head snapped up as Alison walked in, a couple bags hanging off of her arms.

"Good day?" Emily asked, amused.

Alison rolled her eyes with a grin on her face. "It was great. Aria is small, but her shopping stamina is admirable."

The blonde walked over to the stove and looked in the pot Emily hadn't even realized she had set up.

"Pasta? That's romantic," Alison winked.

"I don't think we have any sauce," Emily said.

"Yes we do."

"No."

"Yes."

"Ali, I swea-,"

"Here it is!" Alison called triumphantly as she pulled a jar of spaghetti sauce from the cupboard.

"Why am I like this?" Emily asked, laughing.

"I don't know, I think it's kind of cute," Alison said as she leaned in and kissed the brunette on the nose.

They continued cooking as Alison went on about her day with Aria. Emily didn't mind though. It meant that the plan was working. For now, Alison was safe from Uber -A.

Down with the Queen.

Emily shuddered.

Alison began to dump pasta on both of the plates Emily had set up earlier and grinned at her beautiful girlfriend across from her.

"So we've talked about my day. How about yours? What did you do?" Alison asked as she twirled a bit of spaghetti onto her fork.

Fuck.

"Nothing, really. Spence, Han, and I went for some lunch at The Brew."

"You guys should've come shopping with Aria and I. I don't see why we needed to spend the day apart," Alison said with a frown.

"Aria wanted to spend some time alone with you. You two were really the closest after we all left Rosewood," Emily said. In all actuality, she was only partially lying. Everything she said involving Aria, however, remained true.

"I guess. But I just miss you all the time," Alison said softly.

Emily smiled. "Ali, we live together."

"And?"

"And we spend so much time together. We always come home to one another every evening."

"Are you saying you don't miss me?" Alison asked, feigning shock.

Emily grinned. "You didn't let me finish. I was going to say, even then, I still always look forward to coming home to you at night more than anything in the world. The hardest part of every day is leaving you."

"And here I was thinking you badass soldiers weren't romantic," Alison teased.

Emily shrugged. "Some of us are. Especially the gay ones with beautiful blonde girlfriends."

"Oh, go away."

* * *

Shortly after dinner, the power had gone out in the hotel which made it pretty hard to clean up the dishes.

Ashley had gone around to each of the girls' rooms delivering candles privately so that none of them were left in the dark. For that, Emily was eternally grateful.

After lighting them, Alison had tried to continue cleaning up the dishes but Emily tugged on her hands, pulling her into her strong chest.

"Em, what're you-,"

"Don't fight this, Ali."

"Oh my god, are you horny?"

"What? No! Are you?"

"Not in the slightest. But that can change," Alison whispered.

Emily laughed and put her hands on Alison's waist. "For now, let's just forget about all of that."

"Sex?"

"Dishes and sex, yes," Emily said.

"I'm officially confused."

"Don't be," Emily said as she leaned in and kissed Alison's soft, warm lips. The slight hint of strawberry danced on Emily's tongue. She was afraid in the dark with only small candles to provide light, she'd miss the blonde's lips completely.

"Dance with me?" Emily asked.

Alison locked her arms around the tall brunette's neck. "Em, we can't even see five inches in front of our faces."

Emily began to sway the two so that they were twirling in small circles, the silence enveloping them and the love they shared. She pressed her forehead against the blonde's and closed her eyes, shutting out all the bad, all the fear, and all the rest of the world.

They continued like this for hours. Even after the power had eventually returned.

They continued.

* * *

The next day, Alison went to work and so did Emily.

Knowing that Alison would be okay and teaching seven classes, meant that Emily wouldn't have to worry about Alison calling in worry or loneliness.

Emily picked up her cell phone and called Spencer who was helping her mother who had just recently been elected the state senator of Pennsylvania.

"Hey Spence," Emily said quietly at her desk with the phone smashed against her cheek.

" _Em, we need to go over what you're going to talk to Rollins about tonight_ ," Spencer said.

"What if he doesn't tell me everything I need to know? It's going to be pretty hard without giving him the slightest inclination that we've read what was in his desk," Emily said.

" _You were the one who basically did shit like this for nine months in the desert. Wouldn't you know?"_

"How to interrogate somebody, you mean?" Emily asked, annoyed.

" _This isn't an interrogation, Emily. It's just two friends getting a drink._ "

"Over the death of Alison's deranged sister who was also his patient. Oh did I mention, this 'friend' of mine is also my girlfriend's ex boyfriend?" Emily said sardonically.

" _Well, when you put it like that, it sounds a bit morose._ "

"It sounds off, Spencer. I'm supposed to hate his guts, not take him out for a beer. He's had it out for me ever since I took Alison away from him," Emily said.

" _I'm sure he's over it by now. People get their hearts broken, Em. It's the way of life. I'm sure Alison is not his first break up."_

"Okay... But... What should I ask him?"

" _Try to find out if Charlotte had any friends in Brookhaven. If there were any patients she was really close with. If so, use that to your advantage. We're only going to get one shot at this."_

"And if he won't give me answers?"

" _Em, I know what you're thinking, and the answer is no. Tonight is definitely not the time to play GI Joe_."

"What're you going on about?"

" _I know how much soldiers change in the desert. They're left up to their own decisions. They use force to get what they want. Please don't do anything stupid_."

"Whatever."

" _Hanna is coming by with Caleb so they can give you your mic. Remember to put it on before you go into The Brew so that we can hear your conversation. I want to record all of his answers so we can compare them later on. And so we can talk to you in case you get stuck. Remember, you only have about an hour before Ali will get home and notice you aren't there. That's the longest we can stall her. Get your answers, then go home before your girl does. She'll never know. Sound good?"_

"Can't wait," Emily muttered.

* * *

After showing Emily how each piece of equipment worked, Caleb lay the mic down in front of her.

"Keep the earpiece hidden behind your hair. It's not entirely invisible. And remember to speak clearly, but don't make it obvious," he instructed.

She smiled faintly. "It's military grade."

He noticed her eyes on the electronics and smirked. "I figured you'd want something that reminded you a little bit of what you're used to. Toby gave me the extra parts that Rosewood PD threw out. I fixed them up so they'd work specifically for you."

"How are things coming with that tape recorder we found in that abandoned house? Have you been able to find anything?" Emily asked as she began to put the mic on.

Caleb scratched the back of his neck. "I haven't been able to get anything. I've stripped the voice mask multiple times to the best of my abilities. I've been trying to peel back the layers on the voice to see if I can dig back down to the original recording. I'm close though. But so far it's nothing recognizable."

As he turned away, Emily slipped  her father's small handgun into the crook of her boot.

Hanna walked into the hotel room and looked at the clock on the wall. "Aria just texted me. Her and Ezra got Ali safely to the book center for that writing presentation thing. You've got your distraction. It's time."

* * *

Spencer stopped in front of The Brew with Caleb, Hanna, and Emily in the car. Emily stared apprehensively out the window before making sure her hair covered her ear.

She stepped out of the car and looked around the parking lot. There had to have been at least thirty other cars in the shopping center. It gave Emily a sense of relaxation.

" _You can hear me okay_?" Spencer's voice said over the speaker in Emily's ear.

"Yeah," Emily said.

" _It'll be fine, Em. We're all right here, waiting outside. As soon as it starts to get late, Hanna will go in and retrieve you. We'll record his answers as you speak. Once we get what we want, we'll leave the Good Doctor and go home for some scotch."_

Emily laughed. "Sure."

She began to walk up to the The Brew, her eyes glued on the doors. She shuffled inside and found herself face to face with Sabrina, the barista.

"Oh, hey Em. How are you?" Sabrina asked.

"I'm fine. And you?"

"I'm great," she smiled. "Drinking alone?"

"Actually, table for two. I'm meeting Elliot Rollins," Emily said.

"Okay, yeah, great. I'll wave him in," Sabrina said. "Give me a second. I'll be over with a menu soon."

"Take your time," Emily said quickly. She was silently waiting. She didn't have much time to do this.

Emily walked over to one of the couches and sat down on it, her body slightly angled towards the door. She ignored the many people blocking her view.

"Is he here?" Emily asked under her breath.

" _He's walking in now. Remember. Smile_ ," Hanna's voice teased.

"Emily!" Elliot called, Sabrina at his back with two menus.

Emily stood up to greet him, returning his grin. "Hey, Elliot. Thanks Sabrina."

"Anytime," the blonde smiled. "I'll be back in a second to take your orders."

Elliot took one of the menus off the table and flipped through the choices to the drink section. "The pale ale seems good."

"I'm more of a scotch girl."

He cocked an eyebrow. "Bold drink."

"I'm a soldier. We're supposed to be the definition of bold," Emily smirked.

" _God, please shut up_ ," Hanna's voice said in her ear.

Emily's smile faltered.

" _Hanna, seriously? Emily is trying to interrogate him. Please be quiet_ ," Spencer scolded.

" _Keep going, Em_ ," Caleb said.

"Well, I guess a glass of scotch never hurt anybody," Rollins said brightly as Sabrina returned.

"Two glasses please," Emily said.

"We might as well take the bottle," Elliot joked.

Sabrina winked. "Sure. I'll bring it out."

"Ah, don't you worry about that, love. I'll get it. Just let us know when it's time, yes? Also, this may be asking a lot, but could you bring a small basket of bread?" Elliot asked.

Sabrina blushed at his politeness. "Of course."

After she walked away, Elliot's smile turned to a full frown. "And now to the messy business. Our talk of Charlotte."

"You mentioned to me that she was angry. Was it Alison she was angry with?" Emily asked.

Elliot eyed her suspiciously and sighed. "I promised myself I wouldn't tell you. It's patient confidentiality after all but... Anything for Alison. Charlotte's pent up rage was not directed towards Alison, no. Maybe some of it every now and then because she felt neglected but... Most of it was pointed towards you."

"Why?" Emily asked.

Elliot shrugged. "Jealousy would be my first assumption. You took Alison's attention away from her. But Charlotte was confusing, and I was never very good at assuming."

" _Ask about patients, Emily_ ," Spencer said.

Emily cleared her throat. "When Charlotte was in Brookhaven, did she get close to anybody? Any patients? She must've had friends."

"I wanted Alison to move Charlotte upstate because Charlotte was severely depressed. She had no friends. She rarely ever spoke to any of the patients and I figured if she was upstate where people didn't know her story and 'The -A Game', she would be more accepting of branching out to others. But Alison refused. Thus, no. I'm afraid Charlotte had nobody but Alison and myself to keep her company."

" _Fuck_ ," Hanna said.

Emily thought for a couple of seconds. "What about any of the nurses? Did she have any connection to them? You've mentioned Eddie Lamb a couple of times."

" _Keep going, Em_ ," Spencer encouraged.

Elliot thought for a few seconds. "None of the nurses, I'm afraid. No. They were all too frightened of her, to say the least. But now that you mention it, there was a volunteer. Charlotte mentioned multiple times that this girl understood her. She was one of the physical recreation volunteers. A couple of nurses told me about her. She had been hanging out with Charlotte a lot."

"What was her name?" Emily asked.

Elliot rubbed his forehead. "Her name completely escaped my mind."

He looked towards the counter at Sabrina who was waiting with a tray of scotch.

"Ah, our drinks are ready. I'll be back soon. We'll discuss this more. Maybe it'll return to me on the walk," he grinned as he got up to leave the couch.

"Spencer, do we know anybody who volunteers at Brookhaven?" Emily asked once Elliot was out of earshot.

" _Not to my knowledge. Caleb is already on it. Just keep up what you're doing. This is actually super helpful_."

Emily smiled as Elliot brought the drinks back to the table in between them. "Let's raise a glass," he said.

Emily picked her's up as soon as he did. "To Charlotte," she said.

" _Gag_ ," Hanna said.

"To Charlotte," Elliot reiterated as he clinked his glass against Emily's.

They each took a large swig, Emily downing the glass before he could finish his.

He coughed. "No kidding. You soldiers really are bold."

Emily began to pour herself another glass. "Well, we definitely try."

" _Well try not to get yourself drunk_ ," Spencer warned.

Emily's hand faltered at Spencer's words.

"I must ask though, if you knew Charlotte hated me so much, why didn't you tell the police?" Emily asked.

Elliot froze and ran a hand through his hair. "Full of questions tonight, are we?"

"Just curious."

"Right. Well... I figured Charlotte wasn't exactly sane, now was she? Her anger wouldn't have made sense. You weren't in the country. You and Alison weren't even speaking at the time and Alison and I..." He trailed off.

"I never got to apologize for her leaving you," Emily said.

He lowered his head in shame. "It's fine, Emily. Neither of us really knew of the other, did we?"

"I love Alison, Elliot. I've loved her since we were ten years old. She's the one girl who made me even realize I was gay," Emily said.

Elliot smiled and sighed. "I guess that's the difference between us. I didn't love Alison. Not like you."

Emily tried her best to return the smile as he began to take a sip of his scotch.  Despite his words, she still felt guilty. She got up.

"I'm going to use the restroom but I'll be back in a few minutes," she said. "And don't touch that bill. I'm paying."

Elliot laughed. "Take your time. And you might find that bill already paid. Hope that it doesn't get here before you do."

Emily stalked off and slipped into the bathroom, locking herself in a stall. "Did you get all of that Spencer?"

" _Yes. Em, Caleb found who the volunteer was. He hacked into Brookhaven's volunteer center and we uncovered the voice. Emily, it's_ -,"

But Emily could slowly feel her legs beginning to fail her as the voices in her ear began to fade.

Her body hit the wall of the stall as she slammed into the ground so that her face was pressed against the cool, hard tile.

Underneath the door of the stall, she could see two large black steel toed boots.

Emily's eyesight began to blur as the door pushed open. From what she could decipher, the figure standing over her was female. At least, she thought she was female.

_Hanna, Spencer, Caleb! Help! Get Alison! Somebody! Please!_

She felt as the gloved hands belonging to whoever was in the stall with her removed the earpiece and microphone, stepping on them so that they shattered. 

"You're a lot heavier than you used to be," the voice said. But Emily couldn't recognize it. It was distorted and deep. She couldn't even move her fingers.

Everything in front of her had started to go black. It was over. This was how it was going to happen.

She had been taken down as Uber -A promised. The Hunter realized what it was like to be The Hunted.

gAme over.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hahahah. Check back Friday. 
> 
> Potentially.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this chapter is extremely long so be prepared. 
> 
> Enjoy though!!

_ Thirteen Minutes Earlier _

Spencer shifted in her seat and looked over at Caleb who was clacking away at his keyboard.

She turned the microphone off for a second so that her voice wouldn't disturb Emily.

"Find anything on the voice?" She asked.

Caleb shook his head. "Not yet. I think I'm getting close though. I've stripped an entirely new layer that I've never been able to get to. If I can strip a couple more variables away, I should be able to get the voice that originally created the recording."

Spencer looked at Hanna who was eating M&M'S out of her purse.

"Seriously?" Spencer asked as she held out her hand.

"I don't share."

"Hanna, what the fuck?"

"It's not my fault you didn't pack any for yourself!" Hanna exclaimed as she pulled her purse away.

" _Spencer, do we know anybody who volunteers at Brookhaven?"_ Emily's voice asked over the intercom.

"Not to my knowledge. Caleb is already on it. Just keep up what you're doing. This is actually super helpful," Spencer answered.

"Gag," Hanna muttered as she listened to Emily toast to Charlotte.

Spencer turned off her mic. "Hanna, seriously?"

From behind her, Caleb began typing furiously on his keyboard.

"I can try to hack into Brookhaven's Volunteer Center's rosters. But that's the best I can do. If we don't recognize anybody on them, we're out of luck," he said.

Spencer sighed. This was their only shot. They just needed a stroke of luck.

Caleb's computer began chirping. "I've opened two screens. One of them is trying to de-layer the voice mask, and the other is trying to gain access to the rosters. It's going to take me a few minutes, but I'm pretty sure I can get it." 

"Come on, come on," Spencer murmured as she listened to more of Elliot's words.

"Guys. The voice came through. I got the original. But it's not the voice of the person who's on the roster," Caleb muttered.

Spencer turned to him wildly. "What?!"

"There's two of them?!" Hanna asked. "Oh fuck. Not this again, I'm out."

"I don't recognize the voice. But I do recognize the volunteer," Caleb said.

"Who is it?" Spencer asked in almost a hiss.

Caleb turned the computer around so that Hanna and Spencer could see the name.

_**Paige McCullers** _

" _Did you get all of that, Spencer?_ " Emily asked on the radio.

Spencer grabbed for the microphone wildly and switched it back on. "Yes. Em, Caleb found who the volunteer was. He hacked into Brookhaven's Volunteer Center. Emily, it's _Paige_. We have to tell Toby. I'm sending Hanna in now to retrieve you. Nobody is leaving The Radley tonight. Remember, -A is always one step ahead of us, and Paige is fucking craz-,"

The sound of static took over the line causing Spencer to grip the microphone and pull it closer to her. "Em? Emily? Are you there?"

Caleb looked up from the backseat and tried checking the server. "Her mic is disconnected."

"No, no she wouldn't do that," Hanna said worriedly.

"Maybe because _she_ didn't do it," Spencer realized.

All three of them stared at one another before thrashing to get their doors open. They all ran out into the parking lot and weaved in and out of the many parked cars.

"Rollins' car is gone," Hanna called.

"Emily!" Spencer yelled as she plowed into The Brew.

People stared over at her as Caleb and Hanna appeared by her sides. Each of them gazed around the building nervously, Emily no longer in sight.

"The bathroom. Check the bathroom!" Spencer choked. 

Each one of them pushed open a bath stall. Caleb bent down near the sinks and found what remained of his microphone that had been previously attached to Emily's ear.

"Paige got her. Now we know why she went static," Caleb cursed.

Hanna sat against the sinks with tears in her eyes and Spencer pulled at her hair, the only thing between them being silence.

"Bravo, Elliot. Make us believe you're a good guy long enough to let Paige grab Emily. The Talented Mr. Rollins," Spencer said drily.

Hanna leaned into Caleb's chest, tears running down her bright red cheeks. "Who's going to tell Ali?"

The real silence hit as they all thought about how they were going to break the news to Alison Dilaurentis that she may never see Emily Fields again.

* * *

Aria held Ezra's hand on her right, and had her arm linked with Alison's on the left as they all laughed and talked excitedly about what they had just seen.

"His writing technique was absolutely genius," Alison gushed.

"I wish we could write like him. Maybe our book will be as good as his someday," Ezra said of the author they had previously listened to.

Aria shook her head and laughed. "Yeah, we wish."

Aria's phone began to ring and she pulled it out to see Spencer's name on the screen.

 _Just in time,_ Aria smiled.

"Hey, Spence. The show just got done. We're going to take Ali home now," Aria said.

"Did you enjoy that?" Ezra asked Alison as Aria took her phone call. He knew exactly who was on the line, and couldn't help but smile as he realized how smoothly the plan had gone.

"It was amazing, thank you so much for taking me," Alison said.

"Oh, don't thank me. Emily actually bought the tickets."

"She did? She should've come," Alison said, disappointed.

"Yeah, she said she wished she could've. She knew you'd say that. Don't tell her I told you, but she knew it would make you happy. So she got you one. She didn't come because she was afraid she'd fall asleep," Ezra said with a wink.

Alison laughed. "That she would've. If I know Emily, that sounds about right."

"What?!" Aria asked loudly.

Alison's smile faltered as Ezra turned to look at her, his playful grin also wiped from his face.

Aria listened to Spencer's rushed words over the line. Her hands were shaking as the other brunette spoke. "Yeah, we're on our way."

She hung up and turned to Ezra and Alison slowly.

"Something wrong?" Ezra asked with a puzzled, pointed look towards Alison.

Aria tried her hardest to smile but couldn't bring herself to do so. "Spencer just sent out an SOS. We need to go to The Radley."

"What happened?" Alison asked, slightly panicking.

"I don't know," Aria lied.

"Well, let's go," Alison said as she began rushing back towards the car.

"You know what happened," Ezra said once she was out of earshot.

"We can't tell Alison. Not yet," Aria warned.

"Aria," Ezra begged.

Aria sighed, her face becoming flustered. "Uber -A has Emily."

* * *

Spencer clicked the door to her hotel suite shut once Aria, Ezra, and Alison piled in.

Toby was standing in the living room beside Caleb who was comforting a crying Hanna, his hand resting on his badge. "Is that everyone?"

"Yes," Spencer answered quickly.

Alison looked around. "No, it's not. Where's Emily?"

Nobody in the room answered.

"Spencer," Alison's voice cracked. "Where. Is. Emily."

Spencer felt a tear begin to roll down her cheek. "Ali-,"

"WHERE IS SHE?!" Alison screamed.

Aria grabbed Alison by her shoulders as she blonde begin to shake and cry. "Ali, Emily is going to be okay, we're going to find her."

"Find her?! What happened to her?!" Alison asked again, even louder.

"Uber -A got her, Ali. But we know who -A is. We know, and we're going to find her," Hanna said through tears.

"How did Uber -A get Emily if she was with you three all night?!" Alison demanded, looking between Hanna, Spencer, and Caleb.

"Ali, you might want to sit for a little," Spencer said slowly.

"That depends on how much time we have left, Spencer," Alison shot in her coldest tone possible.

Spencer flinched. She hadn't heard Alison speak to her in that tone for a while.

"Emily was hunting Uber -A. She's been doing it for months. All those times she's been with Hanna and I, or tonight, like when you went to that book store show, she's been doing it to protect you. But apparently Uber -A was hunting her, too. We could've sworn she was safe. But Uber -A isn't working alone," Spencer explained.

"Why... Why wouldn't she tell me this?!" Alison cried.

"Because this is exactly how you would've acted if you'd known!" Spencer exclaimed.

"Spence, a little harsh," Toby said. "Her girlfriend is missing, she's just freaking out."

"We all are, Toby. It was _my_ responsibility to make sure she was safe. She should've been fine. But Rollins was just as big of a con artist as Houdini," Spencer spat.

"She wasn't just your responsibility, Spencer. She was ours as well," Hanna muttered, gesturing to Caleb and herself.

"Elliot? Emily was meeting Elliot?" Alison asked.

"Yeah, news flash. Elliot Rollins, isn't who he says he is. I wouldn't be surprised if his name wasn't really Elliot," Spencer said.

"Elliot is Uber -A?" Alison choked.

"Well, he's one third of Uber -A," Caleb interrupted.

"There's _three_ of them?!" Hanna yelled.

"Elliot, Paige, and the voice on the tape recorder," Caleb said.

"Pigskin is Uber -A?" Alison hissed.

"Again, one third, yes," Caleb said.

"This voice on the tape. Did you recognize it?" Ezra asked.

"No, I didn't. But I figured somebody in this room probably would," Caleb said.

"Forget the identity, we need to find Emily!" Alison wailed.

"Ali," Aria cooed. "We will. I promise we will. But Emily wouldn't want us to give up right when we were about to finally figure it out. This is everything she's worked for. In the end, it could save her life. She's a soldier. She's not the same Emily anymore. She'll definitely be able to fight."

Alison had begun to sob, and Aria rubbed her shoulder reassuringly.

"Please, dear God... I've had everything else taken away from me. I can't lose Emily. I'm in love with her, she's who I want to spend the rest of my life with. I won't be able to live without her," Alison cried.

The sounds of Alison Dilaurentis' cries pulled at the heartstrings of each person within the room. It was something so rare, so unheard of.

Caleb pulled out his laptop. "Is everybody ready to hear the final identity?"

Alison gripped Aria's hand as everybody held onto one another, waiting for the voice to sound out across the room.

" _You all came together only to be split up._

 _Down with the queen_."

The blood drained from each of the girls' faces.

"Who is it?" Caleb asked.

"Is that...?" Aria asked.

Spencer shook her head. Hanna looked about ready to pass out and Alison seemed sick.

The room grew still as Alison called out the last third of Uber -A.

"We'd recognize that voice anywhere."

She paused.

"It's Charlotte."

* * *

"When will she wake up?"

"Anytime now. You're lucky we made it out of there when we did. Hanna and Spencer were waiting out front. We only had so much time. I could see the mic in her ear from the time she sat down. Be glad she was too busy questioning me to notice me texting underneath the table in an attempt to warn you."

"You asked me to come back to  Rosewood. I did. I didn't like doing this to her. I love her."

"And you'll get to keep your side of the deal. As long as you cooperate. There's one thing about your employer you need to know, and that, love, is that she keeps to her word."

Emily's eyes began to flutter open at the sound of the voices around her. Within her head she could feel a hard throb.

How long had she been out?

She vaguely recognized the first voice, but the second had an accent. Australian, British maybe?

A tall dark figure began to cloud her vision.

"Ah, look who finally decided to join the party?"

She felt their hands on her arm. They were large, and warm. Emily could tell they were definitely male.

Her eyes began to focus as they pulled through whatever happened to her. The pain within her temple was still there.

"Emily?" The female voice asked.

Paige's face came into view which only caused Emily's body to begin to thrash against the ropes that held her wrists together.

She hadn't noticed the gag in her mouth until she felt her jaw move in an attempt to speak.

"Emily, please. Just let them do what they have to do. Nobody has to get hurt. I don't want them to hurt you," Paige begged.

Emily let out a growl so deep in her throat that caused Paige to back up in caution.

"Something tells me Private Fields wishes to speak her mind," the British accent spoke again.

Emily's eyes darted towards the sound of the voice and watched as Elliot strolled into view.

He smirked at the sight of flames building up in Emily's gaze and pulled the gag from her mouth.

Emily coughed and shot him a death glare.

"Now, I know what you must be thinking. What the hell is going on? Believe me. You'd be crazy if you weren't thinking that. I want one thing from you, Emily. And so does my employer. We want you gone," Elliot said simply.

"Fuck you Elliot, and your employer, whoever he is," Emily spat.

Rollins grinned. "I believe you owe me the pleasure of at least calling me by my real name. Allow me to actually introduce myself. I'm Archer Dunhill. Elliot Rollins is no longer living. Or hasn't been for the past twenty seven years. He did me a grand favor though. He lent me his name. The poor sap has been dead silent though, excuse the pun."

Archer turned around and snapped his fingers at Paige who flinched slightly. "I will be out later to discuss the terms of our negotiation. I believe Emily and I have some serious matters to discuss."

Paige turned slightly pink in the cheeks. "You promised me you wouldn't hurt her."

"Oh love, wasn't planning on it. That is, unless Emily decides to be difficult. However I really doubt she will. Not when her friends' lives are at stake," Archer said.

"I don't want to close out the deal with you. I want to meet your employer," Paige demanded.

Archer threw back his head and laughed. It sent chills down Emily's spine.

"You will do whatever I want, or our little deal dissolves." He pulled a gun from his belt line and pressed it against Emily's temple.

"No!" Paige shouted.

"Leave us. Now," Archer hissed.

Paige looked as if she wished to argue further, but didn't as she turned on her heel and shut the large metal door behind her.

Emily looked around. It seemed as if they were in a bomb shelter of sorts. She couldn't tell. She could only hope her friends would be able to save her from this mess.

"There's something you should know about my employer. They're not male. Not anymore," Archer said.

"I was getting so tired of her voice," a chilling girly voice said from above them.

 _No. That's not possible_ , The Other Alison choked.

"Charlotte, I promised a little birdie I wouldn't hurt her package. Play nice," Archer teased.

The sound of boots clicked down on metal as Charlotte walked down the staircase nonchalantly, her long blonde hair flowing through her black hoodie.

"Oh, I will. And Emily will too. As soon as she hears my little request," Charlotte said.

"You're supposed to be dead," Emily whispered.

"Oh, but I'm very much alive," Charlotte said as she leaned forward to inspect Emily's tattoo.

"None of it was real. It was a giant lie," Emily spat.

"Oh, you're right about that one. I figured there's only person who's been able to outsmart you. That's been me, Emily. And really all of you are stupid. You should know. Nobody in Rosewood is truly dead unless you see their body," Charlotte said.

"What was the point of this? What was the point in making Ali think you were dead?" Emily demanded.

Charlotte held a finger to Emily's lips. "If it's my story you demand to hear, it's my story you will get."

Archer leaned back against the metal door, his black eyes murderous.

"Archie, be a doll. Pour us a drink," Charlotte told him.

"As you wish, my love," Archer whispered as he moved forward and placed a kiss to the blonde's lips.

She watched him stalk away before turning her attention back to Emily. "I'm going to jump right into it, because I don't have much time. Your friends are already looking for you. And I don't know how long it'll be before they find us."

"You better damn well hope they never do," Emily growled.

"If the plan goes the way it should, they won't," Charlotte said sweetly.

Archer walked back into the room, his gun sticking from his belt. He handed Charlotte the steaming cup of tea.

"Where to start... That's right... Archer and I. We met about six years ago while I was still playing the -A game. Back when I was Cece Drake. He was trying to get out of Wales on several accounts of fraud. I helped him out, we fell in love. But I knew I couldn't drag him into my mess. So I didn't.

"That is. Until I got caught. He found out. He moved into town, and became my doctor. He knew if we could be together, even if it meant as patient and Doctor, he'd take that chance.  But Alison got involved. I didn't expect her to visit as much as she did. And neither did Archer. It really ruined things for us.

"But she gave him an idea so brilliant. She offered to help eject me from Brookhaven. If I could be free, Archer wouldn't have to pretend to be my doctor anymore. I could live with both of them without any strings attached. That was the original plan, however. But it didn't pass. The judges weren't convinced I was safe enough. So Archer tried another approach.

"He tried to get Alison to move me to another sanitarium upstate. One he knew she wouldn't be able to visit very often. One where he could make excuses that I was in solitary and couldn't be seen. A place he could bust me out of so we could finally run away together. But Alison said no.

"So we continued on like that. Just going about our daily lives. I had Archer and Alison in my life. I had a family. I finally realized, I didn't need anything to change. I was finally happy.

"Until of course for some weird reason, Alison became obsessed with _you_ again. I tried so hard to find out for a fact if you were really what was on her mind. I knew if she told me the truth, I really did mean as much to her as she did to me. But she lied every time. She didn't realize that I could hear her speak to Eddie about you Emily. She thought I was too depressed.

"Archer knew too. I tried to get you out of her head. I risked everything with him just to rid you of her mind. Archer owed me one. So he went, and he asked Alison out on a date. I figured if she fell in love with him, she'd forget about you. I knew she'd never forgive me or fully trust me if she still loved you because of the way I tortured you guys all those years with the -A game.

"And for a while, we thought it was working. But then Archer hacked into her phone and found out Alison was asking the other girls about you. And then we did more extensive research. You were in the army. Overseas. And everyone thought you were in college getting drunk on the shores of Malibu.

"I figured. If the timing was right, you should come back to Rosewood. Archer helped me gain access to the chemical we used on Mona in order to make it seem as if I died. Archer then, as my doctor, declared me dead, had a nurse also quickly check him, and paid off one of the men anonymously at the morgue to take me away. He then convinced Alison, once I was 'dead,' to sign some fake papers saying she was sending my body off to a federal lab. In reality, he was just getting me out of there. He stuck the papers into the coroner's fake report, and voila. Charlotte Dilaurentis was dead. And nobody knew otherwise.

"That was only step one of the plan though. We needed people to believe I was dead. Which worked fine. Step two was getting you guys all back to Rosewood. Our calculations were right. You had come home. And with Ali hysterical, you all had also become murder suspects. Once you all got here. I knew it was only a matter of time before you cozied up to Alison again. You guys can't stay away from each other in the same town. And she dumped Archer for you.

"We tried to make it easy to point at you. Archer tried to get into your head, and into Alison's. And she trusted him. To say the least, it worked. You almost killed yourself. Even after that, Alison wouldn't touch you. Our original plan was to abduct you from the hospital. But you got out too quick and your goddamn roommate was always awake. And Alison was too in love with you to ignore you forever and she took you back. So we had to let it continue.

"You're probably wondering where Paige came from. And Paige has been in Rosewood just as long as Archer has. We promised her a small fee. If she came back to Rosewood and helped us abduct you, she'd get to keep you. Which is what she always wanted. We both wanted the same thing. You and Alison apart. I was just gonna kill you. But that would've ruined the third part of the plan. Which hasn't exactly happened yet. But it's going to."

"Do you understand how fucked up you just sounded? There's no way any of that should've realistically been able to happen," Emily snapped.

"When are you going to realize you're still my doll? You're more like a GI Joe Action figure now but...  Alison is mine, not yours. You were gone for five years. You abandoned her. And she just. Let's you come back into her life. I'm going to make her hate you," Charlotte gripped Emily's jaw.

"She'll never hate me," Emily said.

"Oh, she will if she thinks you've kept me a prisoner for the past year," Charlotte said.

"What the fuck?" Emily asked.

"You're going to admit that to her," Charlotte said.

"Or what?" Emily asked.

"Or your mommy is going to die and it's not going to be from the cancer that's eating away at her bones," Charlotte hissed.

"You fucking bitch!" Emily spat.

"You're going to call Alison up. And you're going to tell her what you did to me. Or mommy goes boom. And let's not stop there. Your friends think Archer is a bad guy, but they don't know I'm alive. And they don't know Paige is working for me too. Pretty soon they're just going to die too. And Alison will have nothing else to believe other than that you lost your marbles in the desert," Charlotte cooed.

"Don't touch them," Emily begged.

"Then tell Alison you have me captive and that you're going to kill me unless she lets you escape. If she does, you'll leave. And you'll never come back. Or Archer will find you. And he'll kill Pam, your friends, and you. Despite my little deal with Pigskin," Charlotte said.

"And all of this? All of this was so you could keep Alison?" Emily asked, disgusted.

Charlotte's face grew somber as she bent down to stroke Emily's tattoo. Her cold fingers rested on the bullet underneath the brunette's skin.

"I know you love her. But I love her too. And I was there for her when you weren't. You're not good for her, Emily. Archer tried to tell you that. That wasn't a lie. That was us being truthful. She's my baby sister. And she needs somebody who is going to always be emotionally stable."

Emily stopped fighting the ropes against her wrists which had started to bleed. Somewhere, in her mind, she knew Charlotte was right.

Emily looked up into the icy blue eyes of Alison's demonic sister, the face that had tormented her most of her teenage life.

"What do you want me to do?"

* * *

Caleb pushed open the door to Emily and Alison's hotel master bedroom and looked around frantically.

Alison trailed after him, her eyes streaked with red. "She keeps them in the closet."

He pulled out the large army duffle bag full of guns and shoved it down onto the bed so that a couple of bullets spilled out onto the mattress.

Spencer and Toby stood in the doorway, arms touching but completely silent.

"Do you really think this is the answer?" Toby asked.

Caleb shrugged. "At this point in time, I think Emily would agree. Everybody should be armed. Nobody should go without a weapon. Until we can find her and shut this mess down, this is what we need to do."

Each of them filed in and grabbed a gun. Aria struggled with a large rifle on her shoulder, which Ezra traded out for his hand gun.

Alison continued to rifle through the bag which caused the others to look at her questioningly.

"Ali, what're you doing?" Hanna asked.

Alison turned to her, her bright blue eyes sick. "Where's the gun?"

"Which gun?" Spencer asked.

"Wayne's gun. It's always right here in the left pocket. She never takes it out. She promised me she wouldn't touch this bag unless she absolutely needed to."

Caleb choked. "Ali, you're a fucking genius."

He ran forward and kissed her forehead before sticking the gun in his pants and running into the living room.

Spencer's eyes brightened. "Of course!" She turned and followed him which caused the rest of the liars to follow the two of them into the living room where Caleb was sitting on his computer typing away furiously.

"What's going on?" Alison asked, tearing up again.

"When Emily almost shot herself, we saw how upset you got about the guns. So, Spencer and I chipped them. Well I did, but it was Spencer's idea," Caleb said.

"We did it secretly so Emily wouldn't try to remove them or get pissed. But we were trying to see if she took guns anywhere in case she tried to kill herself again," Spencer finished.

A loud beeping erupted from his screen as he pulled up a blue and black digital map with a single blinking red dot. "That's Emily. She took that gun with her. If it's still on her, that's where she'll be," he said.

Alison dropped to her knees and Aria rushed over to hold her blonde friend within her small arms.

"I'll call it in. Charlotte won't get away with this," Toby said as he pulled out his phone.

Aria gripped Alison tighter and smiled. "I told you we'd find her. I just told you."

* * *

Emily stared vacantly at the camera perched in front of her, her eyes completely dead.

"Remember what we discussed, Emily," Charlotte whispered gleefully in the brunette's ear.

Archer stood on the other side of the camera, his face emotionless.

Charlotte signaled for the camera to start rolling and sat back as Emily eyed the lens.

"Ali, it's me. I don't know if you can hear me or see me, but I want you to stop looking for me. I thought I could keep this up, but I can't lie to you anymore. Charlotte is alive. I've kept her alive. I wanted so badly to kill her, but I couldn't do that to you. The thing is, I really am sick, Ali. And that's why I'm leaving. I'm not going to come back. You deserve happiness. With Charlotte again. I'm letting her go. And you won't see me again. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. To you and to everybody I've hurt. I-," Emily's throat caught.

"I don't love you Ali. I did, but I don't anymore. Not since we left Rosewood the first time. I'm just sorry it ended this way. Please take care of yourself. And everybody else. Goodbye, Alison."

The words lingered in the air as Archer stopped the camera and looked expectantly at Charlotte. "The live stream has been terminated. Phase three of the plan has been completed."

* * *

"Guys, the building's cell tower is sending out a signal," Caleb said.

"What signal?" Hanna asked, frantically.

From the floor, Alison looked up. She seemed to have slimmed to the looks of a skeleton.

"It's a video feed. Emily's trying to contact us," Caleb said.

"E-Em," Alison stuttered as she pushed herself off the floor quickly to join the rest of the group as they crowded around the computer.

Aria followed and held her hand at her side. Caleb opened the video.

"She looks okay, thank god," Alison cried.

It began to play.

" _Ali, it's me. I don't know if you can hear me or see me, but I want you to stop looking for me. I thought I could keep this up, but I can't lie to you anymore. Charlotte is alive. I've kept her alive. I wanted so badly to kill her, but I couldn't do that to you. The thing is, I really am sick, Ali. And that's why I'm leaving. I'm not going to come back. You deserve happiness. With Charlotte again. I'm letting her go. And you won't see me again. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. To you and to everybody I've hurt. I- I don't love you Ali. I did, but I don't anymore. Not since we left Rosewood the first time. I'm just sorry it ended this way. Please take care of yourself. And everybody else. Goodbye, Alison."_

The video terminated itself as the liars sat around the computer just staring at one another as if they had been shot.

"W-What? No... No that's not real," Alison began to cry.

"It looked pretty real to me," Hanna whispered.

"No, Emily would never say that. This is Charlotte. We know she's alive. We know she's playing games," Toby said. "Besides. The cops are already on their way over there. Charlotte doesn't know we know she's been alive. She thinks we just found out, right? That buys us time."

"What do you mean?" Alison asked.

"God, you're a life saver, Toby. It buys us time to distract Charlotte. Ali, she loves you. She probably thinks you're clawing at your computer looking for her right now," Spencer said.

"So are we all certain that video was fake?" Ezra asked.

"Do you really think Emily would say she doesn't love me? We all know that's not true. You wrote a book on me, you'd think you'd know _that_ ," Alison snapped.

Ezra recoiled and Alison sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just stressed."

"Understandable," Ezra muttered.

"The team just texted me. They're there. They have the building surrounded. I have to go," Toby said.

"Wait!" Alison called.

He turned around to meet her eyes.

"Maybe Spencer is right. Knowing Charlotte, she has an escape route. She always does in case things go south. -A is always one step ahead of us, remember? But we're one step ahead of her. I'm coming with you. I'll distract her. She won't hurt me, and it'll give us enough time to make sure she doesn't ever get away again," Alison said.

Toby grit his teeth but nodded. Alison ran ahead of him and out of the hotel room.

Spencer began to walk forward but Toby stopped her. "Where do you think you're going?"

She looked him in the eyes, and ever so slightly stood on her toes so she could pull his lips down to her's. His face feigned shock as she pulled away.

"Come on, Toby-Wan Kenobi. We've got a Pretty Little Liar to save."

* * *

Charlotte leaned over towards Emily and grabbed the camcorder before stuffing it away in her black backpack.

"Emily, it means so much to me that you'd sacrifice everything for my happiness," she said.

Emily spit at her feet. "You can go to hell and rot there for all I care."

"Oh, hon... I'm already there," Charlotte shrugged.

"Charlotte, we're running out of time. If we want to leave, we need to leave now. I've got a package to deliver," Archer said as he zipped up his black hoodie and motioned towards Emily.

"Right. I totally forgot about Pigskin. She's gonna make you a very happy girl, Emily. I just hope you're okay with being tied up. You'll be that way for a while," Charlotte teased.

 _What are you waiting for? You've got the gun. Stop playing games, Emily. Kill them,_ The Other Alison scolded.

Emily moved her hands against the restraints as Elliot grabbed her by the scruff of her neck, chair and all, and dragged her towards the other room.

He lifted her through the doorway and kicked her onto her side where Paige was waiting.

Emily hit the ground with a thud, her arms and legs still tied to the chair around her.

"Asshole," Emily spat at Archer who merely rolled his eyes.

"As promised, one very pissed off soldier," he pulled his bag off of his back and handed them to Paige, "and in here are enough tranquilizers to last you every day for six months. After that, you know where to find me for more."

She nodded and bent down to inspect Emily's face. "Thank god they didn't hurt you."

"You're just as bad as them, Paige," Emily growled.

"I'm taking care of you, Emily," Paige argued.

"By drugging me up and keeping me as your pet?" Emily hissed.

"You don't understand. I have to do this! It was either this, or they kill you!" Paige exclaimed.

"I'd much rather die!" Emily roared.

"Go. Before your employer changes their mind. We're on a bit of a tight schedule, if you didn't already notice," he turned to Emily once Paige pulled the chair onto its legs, "Goodbye Emily. I hope we don't cross paths again. For your sake," Archer said.

He turned on his heel and shut the large metal door behind him. Paige reached into the bag. "Those drugs in The Brew left your system pretty quickly. Hopefully these won't. I'm sorry Emily. I love you," Paige said as she uncapped the needle.

Emily thrust her wrists upwards in a sharp motion, causing the blood drenched ropes around them to snap. She reached down into her boot and pulled out the hand gun that her father had held many times before.

"Drop it, Paige. I don't want to hurt you," Emily said.

"No... Archer! Archer, help!" Paige began to yell.

Emily grabbed Paige by the collar of her shirt and forced the needle back into her neck.

"Em-," Paige began just as her eyes slipped back into her head and she fell to the ground, completely unconscious.

Emily bent down and untied the ropes around her ankles. "Goodbye, Paige."

* * *

Alison felt Hanna slam into her from behind.

"Watch it," she hissed.

"Both of you, knock it off," Toby commanded.

"I want to get Emily, and get the hell out of here," Alison said.

"And you were the one who thought Charlotte was harmless!" Hanna scolded.

"Oh, please, Han. We all know you're dumber than a bag of bricks," Alison shot.

"Enough!" Spencer spat as Aria, Ezra, and Caleb piled out of the police SUV after them.

Alison sighed and looked back over towards a very hurt Hanna. "Han, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

Hanna sighed too. "I know. I know you're just worried about Emily."

Toby climbed out of the passenger seat, his bulletproof vest strapped tightly across his chest. "Listen, Alison, I know this isn't what you want to hear. But I need you to be prepared for whatever goes down in there. Whether it's Emily or Charlotte. There's a huge possibility I can only save one of them, if Charlotte hasn't left yet."

"W-Well I'm coming with you," Alison stuttered.

"No, absolutely not. I could get fired for bringing you guys here, let alone bringing you into an active hostage situation," Toby said.

"Where is here exactly?" Hanna asked.

"It's Rosewood's old packing house. They stopped using it in the late eighties," Caleb answered.

Toby just rolled his eyes at Hanna's remark. "Just do me a favor, okay? And stay here. All of you. Inside the van, actually. The windows are tinted. We have three people we're trying to pin down right? Charlotte, Elliot, Paige. We don't know if all of them are in the building."

"I hope you end Pigskin," Alison growled.

"Yeah, okay Ali," Aria said as she pulled back on her friend's arm.

The group turned around as police chattering around them ensued.

"Officer Cavanaugh, thanks for coming so quickly. The building is surrounded. Every door is barricaded. Nobody's getting out anytime soon," one of the SWAT officers said.

One of the older detectives moved forwards. "Detective Cavanaugh, may I ask why you have civilians on a crime scene?"

"I-It's nothing sir. They were civilians in the area. I rounded them up for safety reasons. We're sending a car for them now," Toby said.

The detective didn't seem fully convinced but he nodded. "We're falling in soon. Five minutes. Be there."

"Yes sir," Toby said at the detective's retreating back.

Toby turned to the group, finally able to breathe again. "I bought you time. It wasn't a lot, but it's time nonetheless. Get in the car. Don't make a lot of noise. You should be fine. Lock the doors and don't open them unless it's me."

Alison reached up and kissed his cheek. "Above all... Just please try to bring Emily back to me."

Toby grimaced. "There's no try. There's only do."

* * *

Emily crept up towards the metal door and pulled it open slightly, her gun poised and ready.

She could hear faint whispers as she snuck through the door, let it shut, and crept into the shadows as to not be seen.

"They have us surrounded, Charlotte. What do you want me to do?" Archer snapped.

"How do they have us surrounded? How did they even know we were here?! They must've followed you or Pigskin. Because now, we have no way of getting out. They have us, Archer! Which means they'll have Emily! Which means, this whole plan that took almost a year, is ruined!" Charlotte hissed.

"Well, then let's do what we have to do. If we're going to spend the rest of our lives behind bars anyways, we might as well complete the outcome of the whole plan," Archer said.

"And that is?" Charlotte asked.

"Getting rid of Private Fields for good," Archer said as he pulled Charlotte in for an intimate kiss.

He pulled a gun out from behind her and grinned. "You have your toys, I have mine."

Charlotte's eyes glistened with tears. "Alison will never love me again if I do."

Archer sighed. "You can't please both parties. But you have me."

"I won't have you in Brookhaven. You'll be in jail," Charlotte said.

"Either way, that's where we're going to end up," Archer said.

Charlotte nodded. "Let's dispose of her."

Emily cocked her gun from in the shadows. She felt a cool trickle of sweat drip down her back. It had been so long since she fired a gun.

 _Do it now_ , The Other Alison said gleefully.

Emily's finger traced the small line of trigger. This would bring out the worst in her, she knew that. But maybe the worst was her best.

She fired, the loud sound erupting from the small gun in her hands.

Across from her, Archer dropped to the ground, blood pooling from his neck.

"NO!" Charlotte screamed.

* * *

"Caleb, did you really have to hack into the police radio?" Hanna asked.

"Yes. We've been over this a million times. If we want to know what's going on, this is exactly it," Caleb said.

Alison sat towards the back, her mind completely blank. She couldn't lose Emily. Not yet. It wasn't her time yet.

" _All units towards the east wall / repeat, all units towards the east wall. / Gunshot signals picked up, suspects are armed. / Repeat, gunshot signals picked up, suspects are armed. Proceed with caution."_

"Emily!" Alison choked as she heard the news. She began to push on the car door.

Aria pulled her back. "Ali, stop. Stop!"

"I need to talk to Charlotte. I need to. She needs to stop! What if Emily is okay? What if she isn't? I don't know!" Alison rambled.

"You know we can't leave the car. You can't speak to Charlotte," Aria said.

"Or can she?" Caleb smirked.

* * *

Charlotte was slumped over Archer's dead body, her eyes streaked with tears.

"Game Over, Charlotte. Move, and you're next," Emily said.

"You took away my sister, and you killed the man I loved. You shouldn't have done that," Charlotte growled as she leapt up with Archer's gun in her hand and began shooting.

Emily moved back into the shadows quickly, her mind completely taken by surprise.

"Charlotte, let's be rational," Emily called out.

 _Reasoning with the enemy gets you killed. Shoot her,_ The Other Alison commanded.

"Rational?! You just killed my boyfriend!" Charlotte roared.

"Only because he was trying to kill _me_. I'm trying to make sure nobody gets hurt. You can be reunited with Alison again," Emily said.

"No... You walked into this yourself. You killed who I loved. You'll make her carry the weight. I'm going to kill you, and let her suffer the way I am suffering RIGHT NOW!" Charlotte screamed again as another wave of bullets began to rain down on Emily.

She snuck behind one of the large metal poles to avoid the older blonde's volatile rage.

" _Charlotte_ -," A voice clouded in static spoke.

The computer that sat on the desktop began to speak. Charlotte and Emily simultaneously stared at it.

" _Charlotte, it's Alison. Please don't do this. I'm begging you. I love you; but I love her too. And I don't want to lose either of you,"_ Alison's voice said.

"You're a little late Ali. But at least you can hear me shoot your girlfriend. Though, if only you could see it," Charlotte said as she cocked her gun.

Emily snuck out from behind the pole and pointed her gun right back at her. "It's just you and me, Charlotte. And I know you don't shoot well. Not against a soldier. Let's be real. Who do you think will actually die here?"

"It's not going to be me. I didn't come this far to die here. Not alone. I was supposed to be rid of you. So I will be," Charlotte said.

" _Charlotte! Please!"_ Alison cried again.

Before Emily could pull the trigger, a large metal door scraped open Emily Charlotte where the police began to pour in and surround them.

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS BOTH OF YOU!" One of the SWAT team members shouted.

Emily slightly lowered her gun. "Come on Charlotte. It's time. Just give it up. We don't need to do this."

Charlotte moved from one foot to the other uneasily but kept her weapon trained on Emily. "Oh... But we do."

Her gun fired and Emily felt a seeping liquid soak through her shirt. She dropped to her knees as the police began to fire at Charlotte, twenty bullets from each gun completely infiltrating her body.

"Emily!" Toby yelled as he ran towards the brunette who had fallen and was now holding her gut with her hands.

"Suspect 1 - Charlotte Dilaurentis / deceased. Suspect 2 - Archer Dunhill / deceased. Suspect 3 - Paige McCullers / breathing and unconscious," one of the deputies spoke into his mic.

"Hostage Emily Catharine Fields is secured but wounded. GSW. We need an ambulance," he added once he caught sight of Emily's bloody body.

"Is she dead?" Emily whispered.

"She's dead. You did good Em. You did good," Toby said.

 _You did better than good, Em. You did great_ , Said The Other Alison.

* * *

Emily's eyes began to drift open to the sound of beeping machines. In the chair next to her, sat a beautiful blonde girl, her eyes shut and her expression troubled.

"Ali?" Emily croaked against her dry throat.

Alison's eyes fluttered open at the sound of her name. "E-Emily?"

"Yeah... It's me."

"Oh my god," Alison said as she stood up quickly and kissed Emily's lips, crying.

"Babe, I'm fine," Emily said.

"Except you got shot," Alison pointed out.

Emily grinned. "What else is new?"

"They said you were extremely lucky. It was only a flesh wound," Alison said as she wiped away her tears so she could stare into Emily's eyes without crying onto her face.

"If it was just a flesh wound, they took it out, right?" Emily asked.

"Took what out?" Alison queried.

"The bullet," Emily said.

Alison sighed and gave her a tired smile. "I know how you feel about bullets. But I also know this is not a day you want to ever remember. They took it out under my instruction, yes."

Emily leaned back into the pillow of her hospital bed, content. "You know me so well."

* * *

A couple weeks passed and the police had finally wrapped up their investigation among thousands of hand written and spoken apologies.

But not before Alison sued Brookhaven for endangering her and the lives of her friends by not properly investigating who they hired as doctors within their facility.

Emily and Alison stood above Charlotte's grave after Charlotte's (second) funeral, hand in hand, Alison's head against Emily's shoulder.

"Nobody came to this one," Alison murmured.

Emily remained silent.

"I don't blame them," Alison said. "I almost didn't come myself. But she deserved to be loved. That's all she ever wanted."

Emily kissed the top of the blonde's head. "Yes, maybe. But _we_ deserve to be happy."

Alison raised her eyes so she could stare at Emily lovingly. "And now we are."

"It's over," Emily said.

"It's over," Alison agreed.

 _Goodbye Emily Fields, I love you,_ The Other Alison said within her head.

"Hello, Emily Fields, I love you," Alison said with a smile that almost put Emily down on her knees.

Emily brushed the blonde's hair away from her face.

"Hello, Alison Dilaurentis, I love you more."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notice how we see Emily slightly changing? The other Alison and her mind is disappearing because she no longer needs her, now she has the real Alison 100% and can completely devote herself to her. 
> 
> This is the beginning of Emily‘s new life after she is finally beginning to heal from all the trauma she’s been through. It’s really quite a beautiful thing to see. It’s really quite a beautiful thing to read it, and it was an amazing thing to write. 
> 
> It always breaks my heart to write the last chapter of Home For Fall whether it’s on wattpad or archive of our own. I’m not looking forward to finally finishing the story, but I will also be posting many of my other stories that I’ve written on here as well. I know I’m really bad at updating, but I will try to be better with it next time, I promise. 
> 
> The next update should be on Sunday, and it’s also the final update for the story. 
> 
> Lots of love.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it! The last chapter of Home for Fall! 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy!

Emily knocked on her mother's door who answered and proceeded to let her in.

"Oh, Emmy. I heard they closed the case on Charlotte Dilaurentis," Pam said after she hugged her daughter.

"They did. Thank god. None of us could take it anymore. Ali and I finally moved back into the apartment. But we're looking into a house. It's just too small for the both of us," Emily said.

"I'm so proud of you Emily," Pam said with a smile.

"How are you feeling?" Emily asked.

"I'm doing pretty good. Dr. Kingston hasn't seen any more mets. He thinks the chemo is working. I'm almost in remission," Pam said.

"Mom!" Emily screamed as she hugged her mother again, almost crushing her in the process.

"Emmy, Emmy! You're still too strong for me!" Pam laughed.

Emily leaned away, a little embarrassed with a grin. "I'm sorry. I guess I just forgot."

"It's fine. So... What did you tell me you needed to talk to me about?" Pam asked.

Emily sat down on the couch and wrung her hands. "It's Ali, Mom. I...I think I'm going to ask her to marry me."

"Really?" Pam asked, surprised.

"I've been thinking about it really long and hard. Alison and I have loved each other since we were ten, Mom. Neither of us knew it, but for years we both knew something was off. Something was different. We're supposed to be together. Charlotte... did some pretty bad things. But she brought Alison and I together again. And I think that's fate, if that's what you want to call it," Emily said.

"Well... You'll need this," Pam said as she rolled her wheelchair into her bedroom.

A few minutes later, she appeared by the living room with a small box in her hands.

"I figured you'd want these. Well... Your father would want you to have them as well," Pam said as Emily took the box from her reach.

Inside were two wedding bands and an engagement ring.

"No, Mom, I can't take these. These are yours and Dad's," Emily said.

"Honey, I'm a widow. I just recently came to terms with that and took off that ring. There's nobody better I'd rather see wear it than Alison. If she truly is your soulmate, this will be for you two," Pam said.

Emily hugged her mother. "If only Dad could see me now."

"Oh honey. Of course he can."

* * *

"Look, just... Go to dinner with me," Emily said to Alison who was sitting on the couch grading a mound of papers.

"Em... I'm swamped," Alison whined.

"Which gives you all the more reason to take a break and come to dinner with me. I'll help you grade them when we get back. Deal?" Emily asked.

Alison gave her a pointed look, and after realizing that Emily wasn't gonna take no for an answer, brushed the papers aside.

"Fine."

* * *

"That meal probably cost you a fortune," Alison said as they walked arms linked out of the restaurant.

"Yeah, I don't really care," Emily said with a smile.

"Well... thank you for taking me out tonight. You are officially my favorite girlfriend," Alison giggled.

"I'm the only girlfriend you've ever had," Emily pointed out.

"Oh, shut up."

Alison turned to face the water of the fountain next to them in the square of Rosewood. 

Without her noticing, Emily kneeled and popped out the ring her mother had given her earlier that day.

"Ali," Emily said.

"Yes Emi- _oh my God_ ," she whispered once she'd noticed the diamond ring staring up at her.

"We came together over a very very strange reason. But bottom line, we came together. And it's been a year. That's pretty crazy. It kinda feels like way less than that. I'm sorry for all the pain I ever caused you. I know we both hurt for such a long time. I want to make those five years up. The only way to do that though, to do it perfectly, would be for you to spend the rest of your life with me. Marry me, Alison. We've both wanted this for so long. We don't have to wait anymore."

Alison bent down so that she was on her knees just like Emily and pulled her in for a soft kiss. "Oh, my love... I could never say no to you."

* * *

_ Six months later _

"Hanna, please. Stop," Emily said as Hanna continued trying to fuss with her dress blues.

"You have to look good for when you stand on the altar. Ali is going to look gorgeous, and you're going to feel stupid," Hanna said.

"Thanks for the pep talk," Emily rolled her eyes.

Toby and Caleb opened the door to the chamber, their tuxes neatly ironed and pressed.

Toby whistled. "Damn Em. You look like a goddamn soldier."

"Isn't that the point?" Emily asked.

"Why don't you just wear a suit?" Caleb asked.

"It's tradition. Members of the military usually wear their dress blues during the wedding. Even I know that. That's sad," Hanna rolled her eyes.

"Your sass is at an all time high today," Caleb groaned.

"Can you blame me? My best friend is getting married!" Hanna shrieked.

"Hanna keep your voice down," Emily hissed.

"Just. Ugh," Hanna said.

The door opened again and Spencer hustled in. "Guys, hurry. Emily has to be out there now. Ali is about to walk down the aisle with Kenneth."

"Okay okay we're going," Hanna muttered as she handed Emily her nameplate.

Emily walked out with Hanna hanging onto her arm. They reached the alter where over sixty people they knew were sitting in the audience waiting for the ceremony to commence.

"Oh jeez. I'm nervous," Emily muttered.

"Don't be. You've got this. And so does Ali. Just think of all the great honeymoon sex you're going to get tonight," Hanna said.

"Hanna!" Emily exclaimed.

"What? It's true," Hanna said, slightly annoyed.

Emily rolled her eyes and stood in her designated spot. The priest joined her and grinned.

"Why my dear, you look absolutely lovely," he said.

"Thank you, Father," Emily said with a tight smile.

Behind them, the organ began to play, and Alison walked from her chamber with her father's arm linked to hers.

Emily began to smile so hard her cheeks hurt.

Kenneth delivered Alison to the alter in her long shimmering white dress. The two met each other's gazes and began to blush.

"You're so beautiful," Emily whispered.

"I love you," Alison said back.

The service began as Alison and Emily just stared at each other and held one another's hands. They tuned out most of what the priest said and enjoyed each other's company. It was as if they were the only two in the room.

They delivered their vows when they had to and continued to do what they had to do. Soon after, the priest asked for them to exchange the rings.

They waited for confirmation and the priest's instructions before Emily and Alison bent close together and kissed one another softly and tenderly. It resembled their first kiss, except it was full of love on both sides. It was a love that couldn't be broken.

And with it, Emily began to cry. It was the first time she had cried since she was in Afghanistan. And it felt good. It felt good to wash everything away. It felt relieving to let go of her demons and cry tears of joy.

Alison held her face against her own, which was also shining with tears.

The crowd had stood up and was clapping. Pam in the front row had stood up to lean against her wheelchair with Kenneth by her side helping her.

"We have made it. We're going to be together forever now," Alison whispered.

Emily nodded and kissed her beautiful bride again. She couldn't form words.

There was nothing left to be said.

There was only love.

And love has no limits.

* * *

_ Two Months Later _

"It's such a lovely day for the park," Hanna said exuberantly.

The couples all laughed at her as she began to skip around in wide circles.

Emily kissed Alison's nose and squeezed her hand in her own. "It's a lovely day to walk in the park with my lovely wife."

"I still can't get over hearing you call me that," Alison giggled.

"Mrs. Alison Fields," Emily said before her lips found the blonde's.

"You two are ruining it," Hanna exclaimed.

Aria rolled her eyes. "They're newlyweds. Cut them some slack."

"When Caleb and I get married, I sure as hell am not acknowledging it," Hanna said.

"Thanks Han, that's great to know. Guess I just won't ask you," Caleb said.

"Boy, you better ask me or I'll kick your ass," Hanna glared at him.

Everybody laughed.

"Isn't it funny how Ali and I were the first to get married? Everybody thought we'd be last," Emily said.

"You two have loved each other the longest. You're the original couple," Toby said.

"No, it's not a matter of that. I just think whatever is out there is pushing us together. We will always have each other," Emily whispered.

"Oh god, I see what you're getting at now, Han," Spencer said and pretending to gag.

"Oh shut the hell up all of you," Alison laughed as she wrapped her arms around the brunette's neck and kissed her.

* * *

"Do you want kids?" Alison asked as they laid next to each other in bed.

Their new house was huge, almost too big for the both of them. Some nights it kept Alison up as she realized how lonely it was.

They had built one a couple towns away from Rosewood. The thought of living there was just too much for either her or Emily to bear. They needed to escape.

Of course they visited Pam (who was now sitting in remission) every now and then. But they tended to stay away from Rosewood if they could help it.

Alison transferred jobs, and Emily moved into a new recruiting office. They lived seemingly normal lives.

Alison stared at the picture by their bedside of her and Emily kissing on top of the Eiffel Tower on their honeymoon. It made her smile faintly.

Hanna and Caleb moved back to New York where Hanna resumed her job of traveling the world for fashion shows and new ideas for her designs.

Aria and Ezra also moved to New York so they could continue writing their novel where a publisher could easily pick them up.

Toby and Spencer finally admitted to loving each other and left Rosewood for Washington DC where Toby was paid more as a cop and where Spencer could continue working as a presidential desk jockey.

All seemed well.

Until Alison's thoughts clouded her mind at night.

"Kids?" Emily asked.

"Yeah. Mini versions of us," Alison said.

"Well... I mean... of course I've thought of it. But I just don't think-,"

"Think what?" Alison asked, a little hurt.

"I don't think it's smart to have kids right now, okay?" Emily whispered.

"But it would be _our_ child," Alison said.

"We will have children Ali. We will. But I can't right now," Emily said.

"Em-,"

But Emily had already turned over and was fast asleep.

* * *

Alison had the next Monday off seeing as it was a holiday.

Emily on the other hand, had to work.

Emily had tried to play hooky and spend the day with her wife, but Alison laughed and wouldn't let her. Somebody had to bring home money for dinner.

"Fine. But we'll have a lot of fun tonight," Emily winked.

"Ooh, I'm looking forward to it," Alison returned the gesture.

She still couldn't get their previous conversation off of her mind. Why didn't Emily want to have children? Was it because they had only been married for half a year?

Alison didn't know.

She sat down on the couch and watched a couple of episodes of Friends.

At this point in time, it was the only thing that could make her feel better.

A loud knock sounded on the door. Alison stood up and opened it only to find herself face to face with an army officer with a half melted face.

"Mrs. Fields," he said as he took off his cap.

"Lieutenant Meyers," Alison said.

"Is Emily home? If so,   
do you mind if I come inside?" He asked.

Alison shook her head. "Emily is working today. But I could call her home if you would like."

"I need to speak to you both. That would be helpful. I can have her pardoned from her post. This is, after all, work related," he said.

"I'm afraid I don't follow," Alison said, confused.

"You will. In due time."

* * *

"Lieutenant? What are you doing here?" Emily asked as she got home from work, her chest heaving from panting.

"Babe, it's okay," Alison said as she brought out a cup of coffee for the man.

"I rushed home when you called. I thought it was an emergency," Emily said, a little annoyed yet relieved everything was okay.

"No, we're fine," Alison said.

Meyers beckoned them to sit across from him.

"I have a letter for Private Fields. It was delivered to me from the board of warfare," he said.

He pulled a Manila envelope from his coat and handed it to Emily who took it with shaking fingers.

She opened it and read the fine print before sitting back.

"They want to promote me to Private First Class," Emily said with a frown.

"Babe, that's great news. You should be happier about this!" Alison exclaimed.

"But they are also demanding another deployment. They want to send me back to the sandpit," Emily finished.

"W-What?" Alison asked.

After Emily didn't answer, Alison stood up.

"No. No, this isn't happening. She's already done a tour, Meyers. She's already done one!" Alison exclaimed with tears in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Alison," Meyers said.

Alison didn't answer as she turned around to walk to their bedroom and locked herself in the bathroom, her eyes bleeding tears.

* * *

"Alison, please open the door," Emily begged.

It had been a couple hours and Alison still hadn't stopped crying. She wasn't sure if Meyers was still there, and she didn't care.

After Alison didn't answer, Emily sighed.

"Ali, if you don't open this door, I'm going to kick it down."

Alison rolled her swollen eyes and stood up to unlock the door.

"What?!" She exclaimed.

"Don't snap at me," Emily growled.

"You opted for this, didn't you? That's why you told me you couldn't have kids right now. You knew this was going to happen," Alison spat.

"I didn't know for certain, Ali. I had a feeling. I heard the talk. They don't want me there to fight, Alison. They want me there to train new recruits," Emily said.

Alison's crying stopped. "Why didn't you tell me that before?"

"Because ultimately it's still dangerous. Being anywhere in Afghanistan is dangerous. There's always a risk. I wasn't going to make you think I would be 100 percent fine. That would've been a lie," Emily said.

Alison wrapped her arms around Emily's neck and buried her face in her chest. "I don't want you to leave."

"Believe me, I don't want to leave either. But I don't have a choice. They own me," Emily said.

"No. _I do_. You're mine. They're a job. I'm your wife. But you need that promotion. You can't stay a private second class forever. It'll be okay... I know it will be," Alison whispered.

Emily sighed. "Just think. When I get back, we'll revisit having kids. How does that sound?"

"Wonderful."

* * *

_ Four Weeks Later _

Emily got out of the car at the army base airport where Meyers was waiting.

Alison followed out after her, her eyes swollen and red from crying.

"Ready?" Meyers asked.

"Ready as I'll ever be," Emily replied.

He smirked slightly and took Emily's duffle bag from her. "I hope you remember how to fly in a helicopter. We'll be flying into Kabul that way after we get off of the Globemaster."

"Of course I do. How could I forget?" She said.

She turned around to face the blonde who was watching all of the other soldiers say goodbye to their loved ones.

"This is what's best, Emily," Alison said after a while.

"I don't believe you," Emily said.

"Well, start trying to. I'm attempting to be supportive," Alison laughed amid her cracked voice.

Emily laughed along with her and kissed her forehead. "I'll be back before you know it. It'll be like I never even left."

"You better send letters," Alison said.

"Why wouldn't I?" Emily whispered as she kissed her wife's soft plump lips.

"Just... Go. Before I break down again," Alison said.

"I love you," Emily whispered.

"Oh baby... I love you so so much," Alison whispered back.

After a long hug and many kisses, Emily finally turned away to climb into the back of the airplane.

Alison waved to her before the back shut blocking her from view.

Emily held her head in her hands before pulling out a paper and pen.

She felt the plane begin to speed down the runway and lift into the air as it took her closer to Afghanistan.

And further away from Alison.

She touched the pen to the paper and began to write among the jostling movements of the plane.

_Dear Alison,_

_I just left the airport, I just left you. I already feel like my heart is breaking into a million tiny little pieces. I don't know how I can continue to do this._

_I know it will be alright in the end, though. I am married to such a beautiful woman. I am going to have the most wonderful children when I get to see that woman again. And that woman is you._

_I have loved you for so so long. I can't think of another day without you in it. How stupid I was to have left you._

_These nine months will go by so fast. And every day. Every damn day, I will be one step closer to seeing you again._

_Like you said, it will all be alright. I get to spend the rest of my life with you._

_I love you, Alison Fields._

_And I promise. I swear on my heart and the vows I made to you the day we wed._

_I will be Home For Fall._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is always so heartbreaking to end. But every story must come to an end. 
> 
> As of right now, I have no plans to add a sequel, although I know that’s extremely anticipated and wanted. 
> 
> That may possibly happen. But I don’t have plans to do that because I believe this story ended exactly where it needed to. 
> 
> We’ll see. Only time may tell. 
> 
> You guys have been such a great audience and I am extremely lucky to have gotten to write for you! Come back again when I upload my next Emison story, The Difference Between Us! 
> 
> See you soon!


End file.
